Six Dead of Fentanyl Overdose Last Month Alone, Says Sheriff’s Office in Alert Issued to Humboldt County Citizens
Press
release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
Humboldt
County has seen a substantial increase in illicit fentanyl
distribution, possession and overdose cases, including an alarming
number of overdose deaths.
Fentanyl
is a synthetic opioid and a Schedule II narcotic that is
approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more
potent than heroin. Fentanyl is often added to heroin and other drugs
to increase their potency and can cause accidental overdose.
As
of April 14, 2021, the Humboldt County Coroner’s Office has
Posted By Thadeus Greenson@ThadeusGreenson on Tue, Apr 13, 2021 at 8:52 AM Humboldt County is in the midst of a surge of fentanyl-related overdose deaths, alarming local officials who have long braced for the powerful opioid’s impact on the North Coast.
Fentanyl has accounted for nearly 50 percent of Humboldt County’s alcohol and other drug (AOD) deaths so far this year, with five overdose deaths logged in March alone, according to data provided by the Coroner’s Office. And through the first three months of the year, 2021 had already matched the number of fentanyl overdose deaths recorded in Humboldt County in all of 2019 and was on pace to more than triple last year’s tally.