Outside The EARL on a recent Sunday afternoon, people gathered at the mainstay in East Atlanta Village to drink beer and catch up with friends — a sign of normalcy after a disruptive year brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
But inside, past all the rock music and still more glasses clinking at the bar, were two women seated in front of a banner that read “Don’t Run — Call 911!”
They were greeting people and and ushering them into a silent back room for life-saving overdose prevention training.
With people returning in droves to nightlife scenes, bars have reported a wave of overdoses. Interventions such as this training are key to saving lives, say experts such as Dr. Sarah Febres-Cordero, who volunteers with Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition.