12 prison staff, 2 inmates released from hospital after exposure to 'unknown substance'

Crews from the Goodyear, Buckeye and Glendale fire departments responded Tuesday morning to reports of multiple staff members inside Perryville Prison being exposed to an “unknown substance.” Various staff members were transported to a hospital, the fire department said.

According to the Goodyear Fire Department, the incident happened inside the prison's San Carlos unit. Officials from the Arizona Department of Corrections said a “small white bag of a white powder substance” was found on a transport vehicle around 6:30 a.m.

Once the bag was found, it was handed over to a correctional officer, who then began to feel dizzy and light-headed. The officer was taken to a hospital to be further evaluated.

According to a statement from the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry, a total of 12 ADCRR staff members and two inmates were hospitalized "out of an abundance of caution."

Hazmat crews located the unknown substance and a sample was taken to determine what the substance was. Crews on the scene determined it to be non-hazardous, with another sample sent to a state lab for further analysis.

"Since then, all staff members and the two inmates have been released from the hospital. The two inmates are back in their housing unit and prison operations are resuming as normal," ADCRR said in the release.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 14 hospitalized at Perryville Prison due to 'unknown substance'