The following information was provided to us by Cleveland County Director of Emergency Management, George Mauldin;
On April 6, 2022, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) sent a letter to local, state and federal law enforcement agencies warning of a spike in fentanyl-related mass-overdose events. The letter details seven mass-overdose events in five states and Washington D.C. within the past two months, which resulted in 58 overdoses and 29 deaths. In each of these events, the victims unknowingly ingested fentanyl. In six of the events, the victims ingested cocaine laced with fentanyl. In the seventh event, the victims ingested what they believed to be 30mg oxycodone pills, but which were fake prescription pills containing fentanyl.
Within the past month, there was a mass-overdose event in Norman during which 3 individuals overdosed after ingesting cocaine laced with fentanyl.
A mass-overdose event is defined as an event in which three or more overdoses occur at about the same time at the same location.
On September 27, 2021, the DEA issued a public safety alert, the first in six years that detailed a significant increase in counterfeit pills containing fentanyl or methamphetamine.
DEA laboratory analysis indicates the two out of five counterfeit pill containing fentanyl have a potentially lethal dose. The most common counterfeit pills are made to look like Oxycontin, Percocet, Vicodin, Xanax and Adderall.
