Fentanyl-laced baggies found near kindergarten
UPPER DARBY » Residue found in one of 13 empty bags recovered on the grounds of a township Kindergarten Center Wednesday morning tested positive for fentanyl, Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said.
While no one was harmed, the discovery outside the school at State Road and Shadeland Avenue in Drexel Hill raised concerns for the township’s top cop as well as Upper Darby School District Superintendent Dan Nerelli.
“Some of these bags were found along the fence line of the playground,” Chitwood said. “It’s a dangerous situation.”
Between January and July of this year, heroin, fentanyl or a combination of both accounted for 97 out of a total 107 drug overdose deaths in Delaware County, according to statistics provided by the Delaware County District Attorney’s office.
In June, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration re- leased an alert to police, paramedics, firefighters and other first responders about the dangers of fentanyl, a synthetic opiate painkiller that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. It warned they could be victims of an overdose by accidentally touching or inhaling even a small amount of the drug. The DEA also warned K-9 officers could be at risk and encouraged handlers to be vigilant.
According to Chitwood and school district spokeswoman Dina Spino, a security guard for the school district made the discovery during a routine grounds inspection about 9 a.m. Wednesday.
“The security guard was making his rounds and found several bags along the fence of the playground and several bags on the Shadeland Avenue side of the school,” Chitwood said. “We were able to scrape residue out of one of the empty bags and it tested positive for fentanyl.”
Five of the bags were stamped “The Fenix,” Chitwood said.
When school district officials received word about the fentanyl reaction, Spino said Nerelli issued a message to parents throughout the district.
“At this time we have no reason to believe that any of our students encountered the drugs, but we are still deeply troubled and concerned about the discovery,” Nerelli said, urging parents to take action at home.
“Parents, please talk to your children about the dangers of controlled substances and what to do if they ever encounter something that they suspect to be drug,” he said. “Our school personnel is trained in taking universal precautions so children should report any suspected controlled substance, especially one found on or near school grounds, to a school official immediately.”
Nerelli also encouraged students to report similar findings outside of school to a parent or adult and notify police. Children should never touch any suspected controlled substance, he said.
“While this is an unfortunate way to start off the school year, it does serves as a reminder that keeping our students safe is a partnership between the school district and the community, and it is our top priority in the Upper Darby School District,” Nerelli said.
According to Chitwood, exposure to fentanyl is a concern among trained law enforcement and other first responders as they respond almost daily to overdose calls. Given the danger of the substance, he was relieved that none of the kindergarten students appeared to have come in contact with the baggies.
“It looks at this point in time that whoever used the bags just discarded them,” Chitwood said, noting that the investigation was continuing.
According to Dr. George Avetian, a family practitioner with nearly 30 years of experience who serves as senior medical advisor for Delaware County Council and the Departments of Intercommunity Health, no law enforcement officer or other first responder in Delaware County to his knowledge has suffered any adverse reaction to an exposure to fentanyl or carfentanil, but he said it remains a concern.
Carfentanil — a synthetic opioid that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and intended to tranquilize elephants and other large animals — is even of greater concern nowadays than fentanyl, Avetian said.
“Any exposure to residue of any of these drugs has potential consequences,” he said.
County District Attorney Jack Whelan said Wednesday that the county, through its Heroin Task Force, will be implementing a new policy in coming weeks for police, EMS and other first responders regarding the handling of any suspected opioid overdose calls. The policy will include the use of protective gloves and masks, which are now on order, he said.
Noting the heroin epidemic that is gripping the nation including Delaware County, Nerelli encouraged anyone in need of help with an addiction to contact the Delaware County Office of Behavioral Health at 610-7132365 for information on treatment options.