West Lothian Addiewell prison: Staff rushed to hospital after prisoners smoke 'psychoactive' substance

Prison officers rushed to hospital after incident
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Two prison officers were rushed to hospital after reportedly inhaling fumes from a psychoactive narcotic substance being smoked by prisoners at Addiewell prison in West Lothian.

Eight warders and two prisoners at the privately-run jail were reported to have been affected. Police, paramedics and fire crews were called to the prison on Thursday afternoon, June 1. The two officers were taken to St John's Hospital, Livingston, police said, while others were treated at the prison.

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A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Around 3.20 pm on Thursday, June 1, 2023, police were called to HMP Addiewell prison, West Lothian, following a report that a number of prisoners and staff had taken unwell within. Two prison staff attended hospital as a precaution. All others were treated by medical staff at the prison. Enquiries are ongoing into the circumstances surrounding the incident."

Two prisoners appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, then prison officers were taken ill.   Picture: Lisa Ferguson.Two prisoners appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, then prison officers were taken ill.   Picture: Lisa Ferguson.
Two prisoners appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, then prison officers were taken ill. Picture: Lisa Ferguson.

And an HMP Addiewell spokesperson said: “We can confirm that on June 1, some of our staff responded to an incident where two prisoners appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance. As a result, some members of the responding team subsequently developed symptoms which required medical attention, with two colleagues attending hospital for precautionary assessments.

“We are grateful to partners from the emergency services for their support in managing this incident. Enquires are ongoing and support measures are in place to ensure the continued safety and wellbeing of staff and prisoners.”

A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “We were alerted at 3.19pm on Thursday, June 1 to an incident at HMP Addiewell, West Lothian. Operations Control mobilised two fire appliances and specialist resources to the area. “Firefighters assisted emergency service partners and ensured the area was safe before leaving the scene.”

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On May 3, a prisoner from Addiewell, which is managed by Sodexo on behalf of the Scottish Prison Service, was taken to hospital after a fire in a cell at the prison.

And a damning report last month by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) said 40 per cent of inmates a Addiewell had told them they had been abused, threatened, bullied or assaulted by staff, with 60 per cent claiming they had witnessed this behaviour towards other prisoners. The report said staff, on occasion, spoke to prisoners in an unprofessional way and found relationships between the workforce and inmates to be poor due to a lack of experienced staff and shortages.

Only 29 per cent of prisoners said they felt safe. The report said: "HMIPS is deeply concerned that prolonged feelings of unsafety, lack of security and fear could have a significant detrimental impact on prisoners' mental health, not to mention the potential risk to physical safety. We were not satisfied that HMP Addiewell were taking sufficient action to address these concerns.”