Cops fighting opioids face deadly exposure to fentanyl

Kim Mulford Ken Serrano
Asbury Park Press

Fentanyl, the deadly synthetic opioid flooding the country from illicit labs in China, is claiming more victims than ever.

Now, it's even threatening some of the very people working to stop it.

A trap house showing fentanyl and tools of the drug trade

A growing number of narcotics detectives and others around the country have had brushes with the deadly drug – some 50 times more powerful than heroin – at busts and overdose scenes. The drug is lethal in tiny doses that can be inhaled or absorbed through the skin or mucus membranes. 

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The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office last June sent out urgent advice to local police departments based on a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration alert.

  • No field testing of drugs at OD scenes, raids and other busts.
  • No unbundling of decks of suspected heroin out in the field.
  • Personal protection like gloves, masks and disposable coveralls must be worn when handling drugs.

The Prosecutor’s Office also handed out the overdose antidote naloxone to its own narcotics officers, said the office's spokesman, Al Della Fave said.

The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office also forwarded the DEA’s alert to municipal police departments.

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The proliferation of the fentanyl was underscored during a conference call Thursday by the National Office of Drug Control Policy in which local law enforcement agencies participated. In Dayton, Ohio, a city of 141,000 people, 375 people have died of drug overdoses this year, surpassing the total from 2016. The majority of 2017 deaths was due to fentanyl, it was learned during the call.

Counterfeit pills containing fentanyl

More officers are at risk.

In Ohio last month, a police officer collapsed and required four doses of the opioid antidote naloxone after brushing white powder from his uniform at the station following a traffic stop.

And in Cherry Hill a few weeks ago, two detectives were taken to Cooper University Hospital after they were exposed to an unknown substance while investigating the death of a suspected overdose victim.

The DEA has issued several stark warnings to law enforcement officers about the dangers of accidental exposure to fentanyl. The latest came earlier this month.

In the DEA's video message, two Atlantic County detectives described feeling their bodies shut down after they accidentally inhaled a powdery substance that puffed into the air as one officer closed a plastic bag of evidence. Though the two men were exposed to just a minuscule amount, they said they felt as if they were dying.

Medics at risk

First responders in South Jersey are also taking extra precautions to keep themselves from accidentally overdosing when handling evidence, searching suspects and reviving victims.

"We’re all just taking that extra step of precaution to protect ourselves and ultimately protect the public as we do our jobs," said Francis Pagurek, chief director of EMS operations for Gloucester Township EMS.

“Accidental exposure to a toxic substance while helping a patient is always a concern,” said Joseph G. Walsh, Jr., president of the EMS Council of New Jersey, which represents 20,000 EMS volunteers and nearly 300 squads throughout the state. “Safety is top priority for our members, as well as their patients.

“Because every call can have unknown, potentially harmful aspects, we always remind our members to follow the most basic rules they learned in EMT class: monitor the scene for safety and wear the appropriate personal protective equipment,” Walsh said.

“This opioid crisis is scary stuff,” he said. “It’s ever evolving and we’re trying our best to stay ahead of all the things that can go wrong. It certainly isn’t easy.”

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Steven Hare, operations manager for Cooper EMS, said his crews handle an average of five to six opioid overdose calls per day in the Camden area, frequently in dangerous vacant buildings. Though they are accustomed to protecting themselves, stories about law enforcement officers overcome by substances serve as a reminder to be vigilant about their own safety.

“I'm sure these detectives are very knowledgeable about the risks that are out there, and it happened to them," Hare said. "The take-home that we try to drill into our guys is, it could happen to them, too.”

More seizures

The presence of the deadly drug is on the rise in Camden County.

In 2015, slightly more than 5 percent of individual packets of suspected heroin seized and tested was found to contain fentanyl, according to DEA data for Camden County. A year later, that number more than tripled, with 15.6 percent of seizures testing positive for fentanyl.

In the city, of the 13,532 packets of suspected heroin seized in 2015, only 846 — 6.3 percent — tested positive for fentanyl. In 2016, that number grew to 2,919 positive tests out of 18,344 seizures, just shy of 16 percent, the DEA data shows.

"We're seeing less and less straight heroin on the street," Hare noted. "It's almost all cut ... you never know what it's cut with."

Fentanyl deaths rise in New Jersey

Figures on fentanyl seizures in Monmouth and Ocean counties were not immediately available.

Rx fentanyl

Fentanyl overdoses are not new. But before the most recent wave of illicit fentanyl from China, diverted or stolen prescription fentanyl caused most. 

Prescription fentanyl is given only to people with severe chronic pain who have already tolerated short-acting opiates, said Dr. James Bailey, a pain management specialist and faculty member at Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine. The typical prescription is a transdermal patch that releases 25 micrograms of medication every hour, at a strength that's 100 times stronger than morphine. Patients are prescribed naloxone (also known as Narcan) along with the patches, in case of an accidental overdose.

"I don’t think even the people who abuse these drugs understand how potent these medications are," Bailey said. "That's why we’re having such a rise in deaths."

Until a few years ago, fentanyl overdoses were largely attributable to the abuse of legal, prescribed fentanyl used to treat intense pain and the suffering of the terminally ill.

Even so, the number of such cases among first responders is "vanishingly rare" in New Jersey, said Dr. Diane Calello, executive and medical director of the N.J. Poison Information and Education System.

More concerning, she said, is the number of opioid overdoses in the state. In 2015, there were 1,587 deaths related to drug overdoses, compared with 562 deaths due to motor vehicle accidents.

Calls related to opioid overdoses are a daily occurrence at the poison control center, and she encourages the public to call the center at (800) 222-1222 anytime with questions about opioids.

"Figuring out how to stop the rising tide of addiction and to put safety measures in place to prevent overdose deaths is occupying the majority of our time," Calello said. "It's a staggering public health problem. All the resources that are going into it are needed, because the ship is not turning yet."

Bags of pure fentanyl

Verticelli said it's important for the public to understand how dangerous these substances are. If a suspicious bag is found, call the authorities, he said.

"My advice to the general public is to avoid and not to handle it whatsoever," Verticelli said. "Even if you think you're being safe, you just may not have all the information."

Kim Mulford: (856) 486-2448; kmulford@gannettnj.com