A group of inmates at the Nanaimo Correctional Centre who were hospitalized on June 13 consumed antifreeze, says B.C. Corrections.
Cindy Rose, a spokeswoman for B.C. Corrections, said that an operational review determined the six men had ingested the toxic substance. All were released shortly after being taken to hospital.
Rose said additional security cameras would be installed to prevent a repeat of the occurrence.
“We have never had a history of this occurring in the past at any of our correctional centres,” said Rose in a written statement to media.
Among the recommendations now being implemented by the prison is a restriction on water bottles, which must now be clear “to ensure no other substances are being carried in them.”
According to Rose, inmates have occasional access to antifreeze as part of their work assignments.
“When access is not required, it is strictly controlled and in a secure location,” Rose said.
According to a toxicology case study published in the Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine, consumption of antifreeze can lead to kidney failure and death.
The active ingredient — ethylene glycol — can mimic the effect of being drunk, until up to a day later when more serious symptoms, such as heart failure or kidney damage, can occur.
As a former inmate at the prison, Richard Carlton has become more than familiar with the drug culture behind the walls of the nation’s correctional centres.
Carlton spent about 25 years behind bars, battling his addictions.
The best way to combat prisoner overdoses is programming, Carlton said.
“There’s so many ways of getting drugs in there,” he said of the Canadian prison system. “There’s more drugs in there than there is on the streets, sometimes.”
Carlton said he never had trouble getting a fix while he was a prisoner. From sharing prescriptions to getting substances from visitors — or even having arrows carrying drugs shot into the yard — inmates will find a way to get high, he said.
“It’s a sad reality that half those guys, they get out and get back exactly to what they know,” he said.
