BOULDER, Colo. Health officials in Boulder County are warning about another bunch of bad drugs on the streets of Colorado.
In a news release issued on Saturday, the health department said that drugs containing fentanyl, are spreading in the community and leading to an increase in overdose.
“Last night we got a call from the mother of a young man who had an overdose, and he was just with young people, people who were partying with Xanax,” said Trina Faatz, of the Substance Use Advisory Group in Boulder County, said.
Faatz said this is an ongoing problem.
“It’s not just Boulder County,” she said. “It’s Denver, Jefferson County, Weld County, it’s everywhere.”
Statistics show a large increase in visits to Boulder County Hospital emergency rooms associated with opioid overdose during the pandemic.
From 2017 to 2019, there were an average of 14 visits per year, only in the age group 25 to 29 years. Last year, there were 34 hospital visits. This is an increase of 143 percent.
“I had a friend who had a (drug-related) attack,” Hailey McCabe said.
The CU student said she responded quickly based on the training she received as a lifeguard.
“I protected his head and called 911,” she said.
Signs of overdose include:
- Does not respond to sound or pain, such as chest rubbing
- Do not breathe
- Blue lips or fingertips
- Loud gurgling sounds
Faatz said people who use drugs should test it.
‘Take a very small amount to get started,’ she said, ‘and never use recreational products alone.
Faatz added that anyone using recreational drugs should have someone close to them who has Narcan nasal spray to treat an overdose in an emergency.
Denver7 briefly chatted with several teens in high school and Boulder.
One 17-year-old said he was taking Narcan with him.
“My mom recently gave it to me just to be safe,” he said, “because she heard about what’s going on in Boulder.”
Faatz said fentanyl is 50 to 100 times stronger than opioids, and that drugs linked to fentanyl can kill you.
This is what happened to a CU student in 2017.
Madeline Globe bought a pill on the street, went to sleep and never woke up.
Good Samaritan Law
Faatz said the other very important thing for people to realize, especially teens, is that if you call 911 to report an overdose of drug or alcohol cases, even to a law enforcement officer, to the 911 system, or to a medical provider, it protects you from criminal prosecution.
‘It’s much better for a young person not to leave a friend with the guilt, but to call 911, and they can always reflect on the fact that they understand the law that protects them, the law of the Good Samaritan. she said.