A laundromat owner in Hamilton says he’s at a “dead end” over youths climbing into washing machines to get high from huffing deodorant.

For almost a month, 14 youths from different groups have visited the Double Bubble Laundromat in the Hamilton suburb of Dinsdale.

“We are pretty scared,” the owner of the business, who asked not to be named, said.

The youths climb into or behind the industrial washing machines and then get so high from the deodorant they pass out or spit blood.

The owner understands the youths are only 8 to 12 years old, barely even teenagers.

But despite the young age of the huffers, the owners are at a loss after reaching out for help to numerous different groups to no avail.

“We’ve made a number of calls to police... they say it’s not an emergency.

“My business partner got upset, he asked, what is an emergency then?” the owner said.

The business owners identified the school the children go to and contacted the principal, as well as their local MP, but a month into the issue they are no closer to a solution than when the issue began.

“It’s sad to know that no one is really taking any interest.

“It looks like we’ve come to a dead end.”

The youths sometimes arrive as late as 11.30 pm, abusing customers and scaring away business.

“I was wondering how come the parents aren’t wondering where the kids are?”

The laundromat isn’t the only business being targeted by the youths in the area.

“They are going and stealing from Countdown which is across the road from the laundromat.”

Huffing, sniffing, or bagging volatile substances at any level carries a risk of ‘sudden sniffing death syndrome’ according to The Level.

This occurs when the volatile substances cause the heart to beat irregularly or stop.

“The police need to get involved, I don’t know if even the parents are involved,” the owner said.

A coroners report released this year found a Central Otago teenager who drowned in her bath in 2019 was huffing butane at the time.

The 13-year-old was found unresponsive in her Alexandra home and could not be revived by family members or paramedics.

“I find that it is most likely that [the teen] was inhaling/huffing Rexona in the bath with the doors and windows locked, which inadvertently resulted in her becoming unconscious and slipping under the water, drowning, prior to regaining sufficient consciousness,” Coroner Meenal Duggal said.

A friend of the teen said she would do it when she was “stressed or wanted to have fun”.

Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm said huffing substances isn’t a new activity and there is no data that shows an increase in popularity.

“We have zero evidence of any growth in huffing.

“It’s been an issue that’s been around, I remember it in the 1980s,” Helm said.

Helm said people might begin huffing because they have really serious and difficult things happening in their lives.

“For those people, it might be accessible and give them the escape they need.

“Then very occasionally we have a group of young people who try it,” Helm said.

If parents in the community are concerned, Helm said parents should sit down with young people and have a chat about it.

“Keep the flow of conversation going,” Helm said.

Helm said we shouldn’t dismiss the dangers of huffing, but we should understand it is hard to stop people from accessing substances that can be used.

“You can’t completely eradicate it, deodorant is something that exists in our society,” Helm said.

What can be done is harm reduction, and understanding what circumstances make huffing particularly dangerous.

Using it in an enclosed space increases the risk of suffocation, and combining it with other drugs can make it really dangerous and unpredictable.

Police have been approached for comment.

Call 111 if you swallow any amount of a volatile substance.

If you’re concerned about your own usage of drugs, you can reach out to the 24/7 Alcohol Drug Helpline on 0800 787 797 or text 8681, where you can receive support.

If you have any concerns and think you need to have a conversation about it with a loved one or young person, there are some helpful conversation starters at drugfoundation.org.nz/didyouknow