Three San Diego officers exposed to fentanyl following arrest, police say

SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego Fire-Rescue’s hazardous material crew was called to a South Bay police station after three officers came into contact with fentanyl.

Three San Diego Police officers at the department’s Otay Mesa West substation were exposed to the narcotic sometime before 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, after the arrest of a man who officers say was in possession of several drugs, including fentanyl.

After the man was arrested and brought to the station, he began to show signs of drug illness and taken to a nearby hospital.

The three officers exposed to the drug went through decontamination. The officers were not injured, according to SDPD.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine and up to 50 times more potent than heroin, according to officials. Even in doses as little as two milligrams, the drug is lethal for most people. Treating fentanyl overdoses often requires naloxone, the drug used to reverse opioid overdoses.

A portion of the station was also contaminated and required cleaning. The station has since reopened following decontamination.