A missing woman at risk of dying from a suspected opiate overdose may have been saved by a specialist spray.

Hertfordshire Constabulary responded to reports of a patient in her 20s going missing from a clinic, in Watford, on Monday (November 14).

Police traced her to an alleyway off Lower High Street and used a nasal naloxone spray, which temporarily reverses the effects of the drug to buy time for ambulances to arrive.

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Paramedics arrived a few minutes later and the woman was taken to hospital.

The spray had only been introduced by Hertfordshire Constabulary last month as part of a trial.

Temporary Chief Inspector Jason Keane said: “It was the first time that we’ve used the naloxone spray since the trial launched a month ago.

“On this occasion, our officers’ actions may well have saved the life of a vulnerable young woman and I’d like to thank our team for their superb response.”

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