BILLINGS — Fourteen employees at the Yellowstone Valley Animal Shelter were hospitalized Wednesday after being exposed to smoke containing methamphetamine fumes during a routine drug incineration conducted at a city-operated crematorium shared with the shelter.
The incident occurred around noon on Wednesday while staff were inside the shelter, a day the facility is typically closed to the public for cleaning and extra work. Within minutes of a drug burn conducted by the FBI in the building’s incinerator, thick smoke began seeping into the shelter. The incident prompted an emergency evacuation of both animals and staff.
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The shelter's director, Triniti Halverson, was sitting outside when she noted a strange smell that resembled chemicals coming from the building.
"Then the little bit longer that I could smell it, I knew that it was something burning in the crematorium, like the incinerary," said Halverson. “Several of my staff were coughing, sweating, just dizzy, physically feeling ill.”
Thick, dark smoke quickly filled the air. Community Engagement Coordinator Izzy Zalenski said that the shelter shared an HVAC system with the incinerator.
"It's never smelled like that before," said Zalenski. "The HVAC system is the exact same as a typical office. It's not made for an animal shelter.”
Employees worked quickly to rush the animals to safety. Trap-Neuter-Return Coordinator Lisette Worthey estimated that the shelter was currently housing 50 to 70 animals.
“We were trying to pull everybody out to get them out of that smoke, and there was billowing smoke out of the room," said Worthey. “Some of us who were trying to pull the kittens out, myself included, started having symptoms, headaches, little bit of dizziness, lightheadedness."
At the time, they were unsure what was in the air, with a member of animal control telling Worthey that simply "drugs" were being burned. Out of caution, all 14 employees were transported to Billings Clinic to be treated, and they were shocked to discover the contents of the smoke.
“One of our board members got a call from city administrator, Chris Kukulski, and he let us know that after doing some research, he got confirmation that they were burning methamphetamine," said Halverson.
The employees were treated in hyperbaric oxygen chambers, of which the hospital has only four. Workers decided to pair up and sit two per chamber, and spent three hours each in treatment.
The building is owned by the City of Billings, which houses the city’s incinerator, and the shelter rents the space. According to Assistant City Administrator Kevin Iffland, the incinerator is typically used to cremate animal remains; however, every Wednesday, the facility is also used by law enforcement to dispose of confiscated narcotics. The incinerator has been used for decades and is the only place where drug evidence in Billings can be taken to.
Iffland confirmed on Wednesday that the smoke was caused by the FBI burning methamphetamine in a routine burn. Several FBI personnel were also treated and released from the hospital.
The FBI has not released information about the incident.
According to Iffland, a "negative air pressure issue" caused smoke to backdraft into the shelter. He said that the problem lay not with the incinerator itself, but with the negative pressure it creates in the building, which is what sucked the tainted smoke into the shelter.
"We don't run any exhaust fans, anything even like a dryer out there that creates that negative pressure, so it doesn't want to suck that smoke back into the building," said Iffland. “There were established protocols for those things to happen to not create that negative pressure, and then there was another thing in place that there was a four-foot fan out there that if there was issues that started to arise, that we could turn that on to negate some of that negative pressure with the smoke."
Iffland said the fan was never turned on, and the city is still investigating the cause of the incident. He noted that the crematorium was renovated roughly a year ago, and he said no other problems have been reported since.
Halverson said she and the shelter have expressed concerns about the shared use of the building for several years, when smoke would occasionally leak into the shelter.
"About two years ago, smoke started leaking into the building when they were running it, and that was really alarming," said Halverson. "There were several times that we evacuated the building right away, and I reported to the city like, 'Hey, something is wrong.'"
She described that when animal control uses the facility for animal remains, they do not experience problems, but the chemical burns have been different and noticeable.
"You actually could be on site, and you can't even smell that it is really taking place," said Halverson. "But when they're burning, what they tell us is evidence, it smells almost like plastic or chemical burn inside the building.”
Halverson said she even once offered to have the shelter pay for private cremation services to avoid the problem. The facility did pause for some time. She continued to raise concerns, especially over rumors that what she heard was "police evidence" was being burned at the site, something she said was not confirmed right away.
"At that time they were disposing of the (animal) bodies in the landfill, so nobody took me up on my offer,” said Halverson. "I started becoming even more concerned about that potential disposal method when smoke started coming into our building because we didn't know what 'evidence' meant."
All animals at the shelter were safely evacuated and thoroughly washed on Thursday to remove chemical residue. Most were taken outside and off-site or placed with foster caregivers. Shelter staff are particularly concerned for several weeks-old kittens with existing respiratory issues and ringworm. Sick kittens were taken to Trailhead Veterinary Clinic.
"They're babies that already have lung issues and low immune systems," said Halverson. "I am worried about them, obviously, but we're gonna do everything we can and just keep an eye on them."
Despite lingering symptoms like coughing and headaches, all employees were released from the hospital Wednesday and early Thursday. While many were in good spirits over the situation, they hope the problem will be fixed.
"I've got a stuffy nose. Fortunately, the headache went away with the oxygen. But, yeah, it kind of sucked,” said Worthey. "I'm feeling fine. I'm very frustrated that this important service has had to get paused completely because we have people who are supposed to pick up cats today. We have medical things that need to happen, animals that need to get fixed."
For employees, it will be a long road ahead and a difficult challenge to navigate. A restoration crew has begun cleaning the building, but the shelter will remain closed until the facility can be deemed safe for return.
“I'm super frustrated because I feel like this could have been prevented. We've recorded this several times. We have written letters," said Halverson. "The fact that it is continuing to happen, and I had 14 staff members exposed to smoke inhalation from methamphetamine, plus all of my animals, is not okay, and it should have been prevented.”
