Photo/Ministry of Justice
A staff member at the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women in Maple Ridge has been treated for possible exposure to fentanyl.
B.C. Corrections says the person started to feel unwell while processing inmate affects.
A swab of the area tested positive for hash, oxycodone and potentially fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid linked to the majority of a record number of drug overdose deaths in B.C. in 2017.
“We cannot confirm at this time exactly what the staff person may have been exposed to,” a statement from B.C. Corrections reads.
“The staff member was treated by onsite health care and is fully recovered. As part of standard protocol, the staff member has been taken to the hospital for further assessment.”
B.C. Corrections says it maintains a zero-tolerance policy regarding the use of drugs within its correctional centres but adds, that despite all security measures, inmates will sometimes take extraordinary measures to obtain contraband.
It says it is aware of the overdose risk for inmates and that “medical professionals are available to assist in emergencies and naloxone is readily available in custody.”
Expanded in 2012, Alouette Correctional Center houses women sentenced to open (minimum) or medium security provincial custody.
Ben O'Hara
