Heroin Laced with Fentanyl Causing Deadly Overdoses

Heroin laced with Fentanyl, a pain-killer 80 times more powerful than morphine, is being held responsible for a string of deaths due to overdose across the Northeast in recent weeks. Federal authorities, including the CDC have been called in to investigate



Heroin is bad enough. Heroin laced with Fentanyl is a death sentence just waiting to be executed.

I'm curious what is behind this. Has some drug dealer come up with a cheap source of Fentanyl, and is cutting it into or substituting it for the heroin being pushed on the streets in the Northeast?

Is someone on a vendetta against heroin addicts and trying to kill them with Fentanyl?

I'm sure the users on the street will trace the supply through the chain back to the source. I would guess pushers don't like people messing with their product.

Also, this is the first time the CDC has been called in on a case like this. I wonder what their role is supposed to be, in conjunction with the DEA?

I doubt its a vendetta. Fentanyl is pretty expensive when compared to other medications you could use to off junkies. hell just putting the stuff out pure would do that.

Fentanyl was the agent used when the Russian security forces stormed a theatre that had been taken by terrorist. They pumped it into the vent system. It worked well but ended up killing many of the hostages because of its repiratory depression side effect.

However we use fentanyl at work alot. Why? Its fast acting, but has a short duration of action compared to other opiate based medications. This can be adventageous if your worried about thier breathinf ability. The effects of these medications can be reversed using a drug called Nalaxone aka Narcan (albiet the reversal can be temporary).

I listened to a report regarding this issue yesterday on the radio and they were stating that Fentanyl w/heroin actually increases the high substantially. These doctors were talking back and forth about how that heroin addicts keep searching for that initial high because after so many times using the drug apparently you don't get as high and alot of people just use it to keep from becoming sick and having withdrawals. So, they feel that they are adding the Fentanyl to increase the high each time a heroin user uses the drug.

This is almost certainly not an effort to poison junkies. From what I've read so far, the junkies are seeking this stuff out, not running from it. They consider themselves lucky to have a tainted supply that gets them higher. Death! The Ultimate High! (I think that was a Dennis Leary bit...)

So..yeah, it's just more irresponsible and self-destructive behavior from people who are more interested in extreme, temporary comfort, than they are in survival.

www.msnbc.msn.com...

After Ellen Krips' cousin died of an overdose of extremely potent drugs last week, the heroin addict's first thought was not how she could avoid the bad junk.

It was more like: I have to get some of that stuff.

it wouldn't be that farfetched to equate this event
to a "tracer" being injected into ones bloodstream

TPTB, might just be updating their distribution profiles
and in the process finding how long it takes for the
subculture to react, change distribution channels, etc

there is a lota data being mined in this ?unfortunate?
experiment

This is most likely media hype.

My X-Girlfriend was a former heroin addict, we have discussed her former habit in depth and so I could understand her addiction I read everything I could find on heroin addiction. She started with oxycontin that she was prescribed for an injury recieved in a car accident. She changed to smack because it was cheaper. After 3 years addiction she kicked and was clean our whole realtionship.

One of the main reasons heroin is so dangerous is the potency from one dealer to another or from one batch to another can be quite different.

Example: You buy a $10 bag from dealer X that gets you so-so high. The next day you get 2 bags from dealer X because you think his product is weak. The thing you don't know is that he just got a new shipment of some really strong stuff, and your going to end up od'ing or dead.

Fentanyl has been used by opiate addicts for years. The supply is not "tainted", "china white" heroin is really fentanyl. Anyone that has been doing heroin for more than 2 months knows this. Most dealers would consider getting a supply of fentanyl a windfall and so would his customers. A dealer can increase his supply and strength of product exponentially by adding fentanyl to his current supply. Junkies would love to get twice as high for the same price, and the dealer that has this stuff would be getting all the business. Of course if a dealer adds to much or a addict does not try a tiny amount first, there are going to be alot of deaths.

Point is the supply is not "tainted", addicts and dealers want fentanyl, the unintiated and stupid (no not all addicts are dumbas*es, they are just people with a ridculously stupid and dangerous habit) are going to od and might die.

Thanks for the info. Redbrotherqing. That seemed to pretty well exsplain things. Am kina wondering if the pusher will be charged with murder now.

They're now saying that the much stronger carfentanyl is showing up on Canadian streets, and fentanyl overdose deaths on the streets of Vancouver are reaching epidemic levels.

I suspect that someone is trying to kill off drug users. Most chemists know that drug users will ingest just about anything regardless of knowing the risks, and have interlaced regular street drugs with drugs that are much stronger and much more deadly than anything seen before.

Fentanyl is so strong that even the medics who treat overdose cases are getting treated for overdoses just by touching those affected. Carfentanyl is supposed to be 10,000 times stronger than fentanyl.

What other reason would chemists have for making a substance so strong that the smallest amount will kill someone other than to actually kill people?

Has the "War on Drugs" escalated to the point that TPTB are not just set on killing off the drug users and ending the problem? In the 1960's, we know that the CIA was responsible for raising the stakes on coc aine users with the development and distribution of the much stronger Crack Cocaine - is something similar happening today ?

It has hit Vancouver very hard, no or very little real heroin, all laced and many od's that are severely taxing emergency services..it's a critical situation at this point. Regular folk are waiting 3 hrs for an ambulance at times due to it.
Where is it coming from..CHINA

a reply to: babybunnies

The smaller they can make something, the easier it is to transport/hide/smuggle it, would be my guess.

Here in Southwest Michigan the wife's family has 4 funeral homes. Average age about 35 but up to 50. I would say between the 4 they have one or more a week.

This thread was created 10 years ago and now the Heroin/Opioid epidemic is one of the worst things that has happened. I wish people had paid more attention to this 10 years ago. Weird how that happens.

thnks

a reply to: caf1550

We had about 15 deaths in one day, just 2 days ago.
A few day's ago city council in Vancouver passed an extra .5% levy on residents property tax, for the "fentanyl crisis" Went up 3.9% this year. Meanwhile the council is pissing away money on it's very agenda driven policies.
Im not in Van so it does not affect me but I think I would be a bit annoyed. I have sympathy, but only so much.
Regular people are waiting sometimes 3 hrs for an ambulance, because they are all tied up saving people who OD'd and will probably OD next week.
www.cbc.ca...

a reply to: FredT

At what temperature does the fentanyl become useless? Does the high heat of cooking the heroin in the spoon affect the fentanyl? Years ago some high quality China white came to town where the junkies were use to getting Mexican brown skag and one of my friends got off with his girl friend and the next morning she woke up and he didn't. Pretty damn sad he was only 20.

Solution: Legalise, regulate, tax.

As an example: Switzerland had a heroin epidemic back in the late 80ies, early 90ies.

The "Needle Park" right behind the main station became an international magnet for heroin users.
With all the nasty side effects of crime, spreading diseases (HIV, Hepatitis,...) to OD deaths.

The solution now is, that Heroin addicts can go to the doctor, get a prescription for Methadone. There are multiple methadone centers, where they can go, get their fix in a safe and hygienic environment. The methadone is up to medical standards.

Most ex-pushers managed to get clean. Some are still doing methadone but are able to have a fairly normal life, working in jobs etc. No more Overdoses.

Works best for all sides: the users, society and police.

a reply to: Icarus Rising

That's sad.

Round these here parts the junkies are dropping like flies down to fake Valium laced with Strychnine, about 5 in the last 3-6 months alone. Any other demographic and the Police would be all over this but because its junkies they are essentially just looking the other way which is rather sad because end of the day they are people too.