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Source: ONE News -
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Prisoners in New Zealand's jails have found a new way of getting drunk - alcohol-based hand sanitiser
Prison bosses admit they are almost powerless to stop it.
"Prisoners trying to access alcohol in prisons is nothing new. They've been doing that ever since prisons were conceived, so I guess the hand sanitiser is just a modern twist on that," says Corrections Manager Karen Urwin.
The alcohol-based disinfectant was put in prisons to combat the spread of swine flu, but so far three inmates have been caught drinking it.
The hand sanitiser used in prisons is 65% alcohol. To ease the burn, prisoners mix the sanitiser with cordial, to make what is called a Cellblock Screwdriver.
But inebriated inmates risk more than a hangover, according to Michael Beasley from the National Poisons Centre.
"[They can] lose consciousness, become what's call acidotic, and in rare cases, seizures."
There have been similar cases in British and American jails.
Two American inmates became so violent they had to be put in restraint chairs, and there has been similar incidents here.
"He just became loud and abusive and was returned to his cell," says Urwin about one case.
Despite the dangers, corrections has no plans to wash its hands of the sanitiser.
"The health and safety of our staff is foremost, we're quite confident that that is more important than anything else," says Urwin.
She says if prisoners want to take the risk of sanitiser shots, it is in their own hands.
