‘It’s very concerning’: South Carolina counties alarmed about overdose deaths

SOUTH CAROLINA — Lancaster County Coroner Karla Deese has seen more drug overdose victims at the morgue than ever in the last two years.

“It’s very concerning to me because the desire to do this -- once they’re hooked, they’re hooked,” Deese said.

Deese said victims were not addicted to the same drugs as much as before, such as fentanyl or Xanax. It’s often a mixture of fake drugs with cocaine, meth or some other illegal substance added and pressed into a pill.

Deese believes most users don’t know what they’re taking.

[’Most concerning is pills’: First responders seeing spike in fentanyl overdoses]

“They may think they’re buying an opioid but maybe it’s something totally different,” she said.

As a result, medicine such as Narcan -- which is used by law enforcement and first responders around the country to save lives -- isn’t effective because it can only reverse the effects of opioids. Narcan counteracts breathing issues and not the symptoms of the other drugs often mixed with opioids.

Kip Kiser is the coroner in Chesterfield County, which has seen a sharp increase in drug overdose deaths in 2021.

“The drugs that are coming in, they’re cutting it with these other agents that make it more lethal,” Kiser said.

That makes saving the lives of victims much harder, he said.

“It’s often futile because the drugs are too potent,” Kiser said.

Chesterfield County has seen 11 deaths so far in 2021 compared to eight all of last year.

There have been three deaths in Chester County, 32 in York County and 22 in Lancaster County. The four counties also have new cases, which are under investigation. Officials expect the deaths to rise.

Victims range from as young as 16 to as old as 72 -- and the deaths are not specific to race or income levels.

On Monday, emergency management agencies across South Carolina were alerted about fake roxicodone, or “roxies,” which are known as blue pills containing more potent fentanyl. The drug has led to more than 500 overdoses statewide this year.

[READ MORE: 17 charged in Lancaster meth, heroin, fentanyl ring after 2 year investigation]

Kiser said that it’s critical to focus on prevention. His office is working with the sheriff’s office and hopefully all law enforcement in Chesterfield County to launch an effort to spread the message about the dangers of these drugs.

“We want to help you,” Kiser said. “We do not want you to be a statistic in our coroner’s office.”

(WATCH BELOW: ‘Most concerning is pills’: First responders seeing spike in fentanyl overdoses)

‘Most concerning is pills’: First responders seeing spike in fentanyl overdoses

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