The DEA is issuing an urgent public safety warning for residents across the Northshore following a surge in fatal overdoses linked to nitazenes, a dangerous class of unregulated synthetic opioids.
The warning specifically covers St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes.
Nitazenes are synthetic opioids that can be extremely potent, and law enforcement says the unpredictable nature of illicitly manufactured pills creates an especially dangerous situation for users.
Chris Rodriguez, a law enforcement officer, says synthetic opioids can be significantly more powerful than users may realize.
“They're very powerful,” Rodriguez said. “And they end up leading to overdoses.”
Rodriguez says one of the biggest concerns is that users may not know how much of an opioid is actually contained in a pill.
Illicit pills aren't produced under the same safety and quality controls as prescription medications. Rodriguez says people making counterfeit pills can determine their own dosage, leaving users with no reliable way to know exactly what they're taking.
“When they produce their own pills, you don't know the dosage that they're putting out,” he said.
That unpredictability can turn what someone believes is a single dose into a potentially fatal amount.
Rodriguez also says synthetic opioids can be highly addictive because they change the way the brain processes the drug.
The DEA's alert is not only a warning for people who use drugs. Families and friends may also be in a position to recognize that someone is struggling and help connect them with treatment.
Rodriguez says there are treatment resources available locally and nationwide for people dealing with opioid addiction.
His message is blunt:
“One pill can kill.”
The DEA is urging Northshore residents to take the warning seriously and recognize the risks associated with illicit and counterfeit pills, particularly when the contents and potency cannot be verified.
