BOTHELL, Wash. — Two Snohomish County deputies were exposed to fentanyl smoke while responding to a call Monday.
The deputies were investigating a nuisance complaint that resulted in a man getting arrested for a DUI at around 10:30 a.m. in unincorporated Bothell.
The driver had just smoked fentanyl in his truck and the deputies were exposed to the smoke while they were talking to him. Both deputies noticed they were experiencing the effects of fentanyl exposure, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office (SCSO).
Medics on scene advised the deputies to get checked by a doctor. Both deputies were taken to local hospitals and were released later that day.
The incident is the latest in a rash of fentanyl exposures in Snohomish County this month.
A one-year-old girl died in early May after her mother smoked fentanyl in a hotel room they were staying in. Detectives believe fentanyl exposure led to the child's death, though toxicology reports are still pending.
Eleven-month-old twins living in an Everett hotel tested positive for fentanyl exposure last week.
Deputies were called to the hotel after one of the babies was discovered to be unresponsive. Parents told medical personnel the baby may have been exposed to cleaning chemicals used in the hotel room, but a spokesperson with SCSO said the baby was unresponsive to treatment for chemical exposure.
The child regained consciousness after he was administered Narcan. He and his twin sister later tested positive for fentanyl exposure at a local hospital.
Seven Snohomish County Jail inmates were taken to local hospitals for fentanyl overdoses on May 17. All were administered Narcan and went on to recover.
An SCSO K9, Sully, made a full recovery on May 12 after he was administered three doses of Narcan for fentanyl exposure.
