Amid growing concern over the volume of street drugs tainted with deadly opioids like fentanyl, Vancouver police are planning new precautions for officers who come into contact with drugs.
As a part of its proposed 2018 budget, the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) is requesting $700,000 in funding to build a new drug containment facility.
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The proposed new facility, to be constructed at the VPD’s existing Glen Drive property office, would allow officers who handle seized drugs and civilian staff who work with them to do so in a safe environment, Sgt. Jason Robillard said.
“It’s going to be self contained from other sections, which allow it to be isolated from other areas in the property office, in the event of an exposure,” he explained.
“Each one will have a fume hood, there will be an emergency shower and a monitoring system, and also areas for you to put on your protective equipment and dispose of it when you leave.”
The force is asking for $500,000 to renovate the space and another $200,000 to purchase new equipment.
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Whenever officers seize a volume of drugs, someone needs to take a sample from them to send off for testing, Robillard said.
With the growing prevalence of fentanyl — which can be toxic to the touch and in small quantities — creating a safe, isolated facility to handle those drugs has become paramount, he said.
He added that there have been some recent cases of officers in the field being sent to hospital as a precaution after possibly coming into contact with drugs.
“I can’t say how many we’ve had, but I can say we have had some officers potentially be exposed,” he said.
Vancouver City Council is slated to vote on the proposal as a part of a larger budget package on Wednesday.