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Gadsden County reports a spike in fentanyl deaths over July Fourth holiday

Gloved hand holding a fentanyl bag
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The Gadsden County Sheriff's Office now says 9 people are believed to have died of fentanyl overdoses since Friday, July 1st. The office has put out an alert about what appears to be a polluted drug supply.

It was a deadly weekend involving drugs in Gadsden County. The sheriff’s office handled a spike of fentanyl overdoses, most of them on Friday. Nine people died.

Update:

The Gadsden County Sheriff's Office now says 9 people are believed to have died of fentanyl overdoses since Friday, July 1st. The office has put out an alert about what appears to be a polluted drug supply.

Original story:

Gadsden County saw a spike in fentanyl overdoses during the holiday weekend, including 6 deaths.

The U-S Drug Enforcement Administration posted a statement to social media Saturday about a suspected mass fentanyl-poisoning event in Gadsden County.

The DEA issued a warning in April about mass overdose events happening around the country due to the powerful opioid. It’s often mixed into other drugs – unbeknownst to the users.

Gadsden County Sheriff Morris Young says the weekend overdoses are believed to be connected to marijuana or cocaine being laced with fentanyl.

The Florida Attorney General’s Office says users often don’t know fentanyl has been mixed with the drug they just purchased.

 DEA Administrator Anne Milgram's statement about the Gadsden County fentanyl overdoses.
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DEA Administrator Anne Milgram's statement about the Gadsden County fentanyl overdoses.

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Gina Jordan is the host of Morning Edition for WFSU News. Gina is a Tallahassee native and graduate of Florida State University. She spent 15 years working in news/talk and country radio in Orlando before becoming a reporter and All Things Considered host for WFSU in 2008. She left after a few years to spend more time with her son, working part-time as the capital reporter/producer for WLRN Public Media in Miami and as a drama teacher at Young Actors Theatre. She also blogged and reported for StateImpact Florida, an NPR education project, and produced podcasts and articles for AVISIAN Publishing. Gina has won awards for features, breaking news coverage, and newscasts from contests including the Associated Press, Green Eyeshade, and Murrow Awards. Gina is on the Florida Associated Press Broadcasters Board of Directors. Gina is thrilled to be back at WFSU! In her free time, she likes to read, travel, and watch her son play football. Follow Gina Jordan on Twitter: @hearyourthought
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