MALONE, N.Y. (WCAX) -The Upstate Correctional Facility in Malone, New York, is on lockdown after the third incident in a week that has sent corrections staff to the hospital over an unknown substance.
At least 20 staff members were sent to the hospital Wednesday over the unknown substance. It comes after two other incidents where staff went to the ER reporting shortness of breath and dizziness.
Union officials believe it’s related to a synthetic drug and that most of the encounters happened after interactions with inmates. “Violence is caused — the root cause is drugs in the prison system. And last year the incarcerated on incarcerated, as I mentioned, set the record. Over 2,000 assaults on incarcerated on incarcerated,” said John Roberts, president of NYSCOBA, the union for corrections staff.
.The prison will undergo a full search which will include bringing in drug-sniffing dogs. The staff are being treated with Narcan at the hospital and are expected to be OK.
WCAX asked medical professionals about this issue before. In 2019, a Vermont trooper had to get Narcan three times after collapsing from exposure to an unknown substance. At the time, doctors told us you would need a lot of direct contact with the substance, like an opioid powder on the skin to overdose. They said there have been no medically well-documented cases of accidental exposure causing an overdose.
North Country Assemblyman Billy Jones wants increased safety measures at the prison. The Democrat called for “making sure that every visitor goes through the full body scanner, a more stringent legal mail policy, and a true independent secured packaging vendor to keep contraband and dangerous substances out of correctional facilities.”