Nearly 350 people left their homes in northern Japan on Thursday in order to escape poisonous fumes released by a neighbor who killed himself by mixing detergent and other chemicals, the Associated Press reports.

 According to local police in the city of Otaru, a family member called emergency services after finding a 24-year-old man collapsed at his home. He was taken to hospital but later declared dead. The police spokesman mentioned the man’s 58-year-old mother was also taken to hospital suffering from the effects of the gas.

 People were evacuated from their homes in the area to the grounds of a local primary school, Reuters reports. They were allowed to return home later.

 It appears that suicides by hydrogen sulphide, which can be made from household detergent, are a growing problem in Japan. Media reports suggested that the number of similar deaths reached approximately 50 in the past month. Last week, almost 90 people were sickened by fumes in southwestern Japan, when a teenage girl killed herself by mixing laundry detergent with cleanser in her home.

 Just a day before the Otaru incident, police officials in Japan had asked Internet service providers to take down the recipe for the mix. However, it seems the recipes could still be accessed from several Web sites Thursday.

 “They are rife on the Internet. Writing examples include ‘you can die easily and beautifully’ and ‘this is much easier than charcoal-burning suicide,’” Seiji Yoshikawa, deputy head of the Internet Hot Line, said, regarding to suicide methods.

 Japan has one of the highest rates of suicide in the world.