Seven hospitalised as fentanyl released through air vents of juvenile detention centre

Law enforcement say they are investigating how the deadly synthetic opioid was put in air vents

Seven people were rushed to hospital after fentanyl was released through air vents at a juvenile detention facility in Ohio on Sunday, authorities say.

The three corrections officers and four juvenile inmates at the Northwest Ohio Juvenile Detention Training and Rehabilitation Center reportedly collapsed after inhaling the deadly opioid.

Jeff Lehman, chief deputy for the Williams County Sheriff’s Department, said all seven were expected to recover.

Deputies are investigating how the fentanyl got into the facility’s air ventilation system.

Officers from Williams County Sheriff’s Office were called at around 8.30pm on Sunday night after several people were overcome from the fumes.

Several fire departments, first responders and ambulance from neighbouring counties joined the rescue effort, WTVG reported.

The remaining detainees were moved to a nearby Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio, where they were being kept separately from the adult population.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times stronger than morphine.

A record 105,752 Americans died from drug overdoses in the 12 months to October 2021 according to provisional figures released last week by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Centre for Health Statistics.

Approximately two-thirds of those are deaths are linked to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.

Six West Point cadets on spring break in Florida were hospitalised after reportedly taking cocaine laced with fentanyl earlier this month.

The CDC warns that fentanyl can be deadly when released indoors as fine particles liquid spray.