‘We don’t want to see anybody die’: Warning issued after 'one-touch death drug' found in Brisbane
An elephant tranquilizer marketed as heroin and party drugs has been found in Brisbane, with authorities warning it’s potentially fatal to touch.
The synthetic drug, carfentanyl, was intercepted by border force officers at a Brisbane mail centre and is about 10,000 times as potent as morphine.
Carfentanyl is considered a potential chemical weapon and terrorist threat, with authorities issuing an urgent warning to those who come into contact with it.
This tiny amount of carfentynal contains half a million lethal hits. Picture: 7 News
"This is a dangerous drug. This drug will kill you," Queensland Detective Superintendent Jon Wacker said on Friday.
"Our concern is also to the first responders who may turn up to assist."
The elephant tranquilliser is typically sourced from China, which announced a ban on it this week, and is so deadly to humans it can kill on contact.
Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were decontaminated after intercepting 1kg of the drug. Picture: 7 News
It's only the second time carfentanyl has been detected in Australia, with a quantity uncovered at a Sydney mail centre late last year.
Authorities won't reveal how much of the drug was seized but are concerned that even a dose as tiny as 0.002mg can kill.
Carfentanyl, which is based on fentanyl, has been linked to thousands of deaths across the world in recent years, including in the US and Canada.
The 1kg of carfentynal recently sezied in Canada. Picture: 7 News
Queensland Clinical Forensic Medicine Unit director Dr Adam Griffin said suppliers were able to purchase the drug cheaply because they only needed small amounts and typically told buyers it was MDMA or ecstasy.
He said users typically died quickly.
"The actual substance itself may impair somebody's breathing and stop it completely, (causing them) to lose consciousness, lose their blood pressure completely and die very shortly after ingestion or injection," he said.
The drug is potentially deadly. Picture: 7 News
Even people who get the drug on their skin or in their eyes are at great risk of death.
A US department official last year told Associated Press the country was concerned carfentanyl could be used as a chemical weapon and was pressing China to blacklist it.
A former US defence department chemical weapons expert also told the news agency there were concerns about the drug being ordered by groups like ISIS.
