The Curse of Carfentanil is Felt in Florida
Carfentanil is an opioid drug that packs a powerful wallop. So powerful, in fact, it’s used to sedate elephants, rhinos, hippos and other huge animals. It’s 10,000 to 100,000 times stronger than morphine and is normally only found in zoos and large animal veterinary clinics. If that was the only place it were found, then things might not be so bad. But that’s not the case. Those who are unfortunately addicted to opioids like heroin or painkillers may find some of this drug in the supplies they buy on the street—with fatal results.
This drug is so powerful that just a dusting of powder could prove harmful. When law enforcement personnel suspect the presence of carfentanil in the supplies of drugs they are seizing, they must don protective suits and respirators to protect themselves.
Now, Florida Struggles with this Curse
The effects of this drug have already been disastrous in Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Canada. In one recent week in Ohio, nearly 100 people overdosed on opioids and it’s thought that carfentanil adulteration of heroin supplies were responsible. Now Florida has been added to the list of states struggling with carfentanil overdoses. In one Southern Florida county, 53 overdose deaths over the last six months were reported.
A person who overdoses on opioids can often be saved with the rapid administration of naloxone, a drug that reverses the effects of heroin or painkillers. But carfentanil is so strong that there’s no time to give this antidote. The individual may be found with a needle still in his arm.
This drug originates in China, and is brought to the U.S. by completely unscrupulous drug dealers without the slightest regard for the lives of customers he’s selling to. It’s illegal both in China and the U.S., outside of its intended use by a veterinarian.
The drug is added to heroin supplies to increase the potency without increasing the cost. But a drug dealer or trafficker is not a trained pharmacist who might be able to evenly mix non-fatal doses. So the risk of getting a wallop of carfentanil is all-too possible for anyone buying opioids.
Even pills purchased on the street could contain this drug. A new trend is the manufacture of counterfeit pills, shaped and colored to look like popular drugs on the illicit market. Anyone with a pill press machine and powdered drugs can make pills out of whatever materials they choose.
The Only Safety Is in Sobriety
It’s always been risky to use heroin or misuse pills. And then just when we think the dangers can’t get any higher, they reach a new height. There has never been a better time to help someone you care about find sobriety. At Narconon Arrowhead, we can help.
Call us to find out how your loved one can find a lasting sobriety in our beautiful rural location. For fifty years, the Narconon program has been providing drug-free recovery to tens of thousands of people around the world. Call today to learn how Narconon Arrowhead provides true rehabilitation, a brighter outlook and an increased ability to enjoy a new sober life.
REFERENCE LINKS
http://wsvn.com/news/local/over-50-dead-after-ingesting-new-south-florida-drug/
http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/heroin-epidemics-new-terror-carfentanil
