Maurice Boscorelli
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- Joined
- May 30, 2010
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[h=1]Police confirm liquid carfentanil is in Hamilton[/h]
Hamilton Spectator By
Deadly carfentanil has made it to Hamilton, police confirm — and it has been here since at least November.
The drug — in liquid form and stored in an unmarked nasal inhaler — was seized by officers on Nov. 5, after a patient at St. Joseph's Hospital called looking to get rid of what they thought was liquid fentanyl.
This person was aware of the dangers of the drug and wanted it out of their possession, Hamilton Police media relations officer Const. Asuf Khokhar said Friday.
The drug was sent to Health Canada for analysis, and police say they learned Friday the liquid was actually carfentanil — a far more potent compound, 10,000 times stronger than morphine.
Originally developed as a large-animal tranquillizer, just salt-sized grains of the drug are enough to kill a person.
Carfentanil has wreaked havoc across the country already, as overdose deaths continue to spike in the face of a national opioid crisis. It has been confirmed in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and now Ontario. But because it is so new, its death toll is so far difficult to calculate.
A staggering 685 people are believed to have died last year in Ontario alone — 19 of them were in Hamilton. Experts believe that number is on the rise.
Locally, healthcare and emergency workers have been bracing for the arrival of fentanyl. But carfentanil poses serious potential hazards — particularly for front-line workers who could come into contact with the drug unknowingly.
In a memo emailed to Hamilton Health Sciences emergency department staff last week, chief of emergency medicine Dr. Bill Krizmanich stressed this drug is "extremely dangerous."
In cases where a carfentanil overdose is expected, the doctor cautions staff to wear protective equipment including a face shield, mask, double gloves and gown. The patient's clothes must be removed and immediately double-bagged. Then the patient's body is to be wiped down using cold water to clean up any drug residue.
The memo also stresses that naloxone kits — an opioid antidote available free across the province to drug users and their loved ones — are futile in the face of this new drug.
The kits are "ineffective" for carfentanil ingestion because they contain only 0.8 mg of the antidote, the memo reads. This new drug could need as much as 10 mg in order to reverse the effects of a carfentanil overdose.
Police encourage anyone who comes in contact with unknown drugs not to handle them.
"The public is encouraged to report any information regarding trafficking or the importation of fentanyl (in any form) and other drugs by contacting Detective Craig Leishman at 905-546-3887," Khokhar said Friday.
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/7043887-police-confirm-liquid-carfentanil-is-in-hamilton/
Hamilton Spectator By
Deadly carfentanil has made it to Hamilton, police confirm — and it has been here since at least November.
The drug — in liquid form and stored in an unmarked nasal inhaler — was seized by officers on Nov. 5, after a patient at St. Joseph's Hospital called looking to get rid of what they thought was liquid fentanyl.
This person was aware of the dangers of the drug and wanted it out of their possession, Hamilton Police media relations officer Const. Asuf Khokhar said Friday.
The drug was sent to Health Canada for analysis, and police say they learned Friday the liquid was actually carfentanil — a far more potent compound, 10,000 times stronger than morphine.
Originally developed as a large-animal tranquillizer, just salt-sized grains of the drug are enough to kill a person.
Carfentanil has wreaked havoc across the country already, as overdose deaths continue to spike in the face of a national opioid crisis. It has been confirmed in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and now Ontario. But because it is so new, its death toll is so far difficult to calculate.
A staggering 685 people are believed to have died last year in Ontario alone — 19 of them were in Hamilton. Experts believe that number is on the rise.
Locally, healthcare and emergency workers have been bracing for the arrival of fentanyl. But carfentanil poses serious potential hazards — particularly for front-line workers who could come into contact with the drug unknowingly.
In a memo emailed to Hamilton Health Sciences emergency department staff last week, chief of emergency medicine Dr. Bill Krizmanich stressed this drug is "extremely dangerous."
In cases where a carfentanil overdose is expected, the doctor cautions staff to wear protective equipment including a face shield, mask, double gloves and gown. The patient's clothes must be removed and immediately double-bagged. Then the patient's body is to be wiped down using cold water to clean up any drug residue.
The memo also stresses that naloxone kits — an opioid antidote available free across the province to drug users and their loved ones — are futile in the face of this new drug.
The kits are "ineffective" for carfentanil ingestion because they contain only 0.8 mg of the antidote, the memo reads. This new drug could need as much as 10 mg in order to reverse the effects of a carfentanil overdose.
Police encourage anyone who comes in contact with unknown drugs not to handle them.
"The public is encouraged to report any information regarding trafficking or the importation of fentanyl (in any form) and other drugs by contacting Detective Craig Leishman at 905-546-3887," Khokhar said Friday.
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/7043887-police-confirm-liquid-carfentanil-is-in-hamilton/
