Fentanyl In Vents At Ohio Youth Detention Center: 7 Hospitalized

STRYKER, OH — Seven people — including four youths — were hospitalized after fentanyl was reportedly released into the air vents at a northwest Ohio juvenile detention center.

Four juvenile inmates and three corrections officers were hospitalized late Sunday after the exposure at Northwest Ohio Juvenile Detention, Training and Rehabilitation Center in Stryker, Jeff Lehman, chief deputy for the Williams County Sheriff’s Department, told WTVG-TV. All are expected to be ok.

The sheriff's office, Stryker police and Bryan Fire were called to the facility around 8:30 p.m. Sunday for reports that youths at the facility were exposed to something and collapsed, Lehman told WTOL-TV. Crews searched the facility and discovered fentanyl was released into the air vents.

The juveniles who weren't hospitalized were moved to an adult detention facility as crews investigated, Lehman said. They'll stay there, separated from adults, until accommodations can be made.

Fentanyl is a rapid-acting opioid used as a pain reliever and is often abused. It depresses the central nervous system and breathing function.

"Exposure to fentanyl may be fatal," the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on its website. "Fentanyl is estimated to be 80 times as potent as morphine and hundreds of times more potent than heroin."

The detention center provides a "safe and secure placement" for detained delinquent youths, according to its website.

"It is our hope that strict discipline and fair treatment of each youth who enters our facility will help them to understand the consequences of poor choices and that the program inspires them to become positive and productive members of society," the website said.