Overdoses In Camden Tied To Batman-Stamped Heroin, Authorities Warned

First Posted: Aug 27, 2016 08:43 AM EDT
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There has been 28 non-fatal suspected heroin overdoses in two days this week in Camden. Authorities have issued a warning that Camden appears to be ground zero for the significant rise in recent heroin overdoses.

According to Washington Times, the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office said that the last two people who overdosed on August 24 were allegedly caused by free samples of heroin with a stamp of the word "Batman" on them. The New Jersey State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center has already issued an alert on Thursday and according to the alert, none of the reported overdoses were fatal.

Authorities are allegedly suspecting that this "Batman" product is involved in the spike in overdoses is related to a past overdose event. The previous event also involved free heroin samples bearing a stamp with the words "Don't Panic."  The Narcotic Analysis Unit said the brand "Don't Panic" heroin brand was seen in Camden had powerful painkiller fentanyl. In a report by patch.com, it said that fentanyl is the most prescribed drug to cancer patients to relieve pain. CNN previously reported that the painkiller is 50 to 100 times more effective than morphine and 30 to 50 times stronger than heroin.

Authorities have also said that they believe the Batman-stamped heroin may have been sold in Camden over the last two weeks. They said that Cooper University Health Care responded to 23 heroin overdoses between Tuesday and Thursday, and the Camden County Police Department responded to six others on Tuesday and Wednesday. The alert also said that the Batman heroin is potentially dangerous. Medical services personnel have also advised that extra Narcan may be needed to reverse the conditions, courierpostonline.com reported.

However, the alert issued said that they fear that the problem may spread to other parts of New Jersey, since most heroin users have commonly traveled to Camden from other parts of the state just to buy drugs. Over the past two months, authorities have managed to confiscate Batman-stamped heroin in Camden, Runnemede, Mount Ephraim, Gloucester City, Williamstown, Voorhees and Galloway.

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