California Drug Overdose Takes The Life Of One And Leaves A Dozen Others In Critical Condition

Police were called to a home in Chico, California at 9:12 a.m. Saturday morning following reports of an apparent drug overdose. What they found was chilling. One person had already died as a result of ingesting what police believe to be fentanyl, a substance commonly associated with drug overdoses. Fentanyl was likely mixed with other deadly substances to create a sort of cocktail. In addition, many others were in critical condition after they all took turns taking the drug. Police present on the scene are calling the incident one of the worst mass drug overdoses in years, according to CNN.

Upon taking in the horrific scene, police rushed to work administering assistance to all those affected. They provided life saving measures to one person after another. At one point, Chico Fire Department Division Chief Jesse Alexander said he saw six people all undergoing CPR at the same time.

Fentanyl is believed to be the main substance involved, police sayhttps://t.co/YPi9VnC9yc

— KTLA (@KTLA) January 13, 2019

In addition to CPR, those affected by the drug were given naloxone, a treatment drug used to revert the effects of opioid overdose. The drug, which can be either injected or used as a nasal spray, helped prevent a higher death toll as a result of the incident. In total, 12 adults were hospitalized after overdosing at the California home.

Two officers who were providing assistance at the scene also began to feel the affects of the drug and were sent to the hospital. They were both treated and later released. The investigation regarding what happened at the home is ongoing and the home has been sealed off to prevent others from breathing in the dangerous toxins.

Chico Police Chief Michael O’Brien is grateful that he and the officers serving with him had been equipped with naloxone when they arrived at the scene. They had only just begun carrying the treatment drug with them last year. This is not the first time O’Brien has had to use the drug to save the life of someone who has overdosed, and he doubts it will be the last. The deadly drug continues to make its way across the nation. “We knew fentanyl had been moving West it really has been in other parts of the country where they’re really seeing the greatest impacts of this particular drug. That is changing unfortunately. and now we’ve have this MCI (mass casualty incident)…that concerns us all,” he said according to CBS News.

Updated information regarding the condition of those hospitalized as a result of the incident has not yet been released.