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Deadly drug 57 times stronger than fentanyl sweeps Midwest
Carfentanil is so deadly, a few grains of salt worth of the drug can kill someone
Updated: 7:50 AM CDT Nov 1, 2016
Anchor/Reporter
WEBVTT BEN WAGNER INVESTIGATES THE NEW DRUG AND WHY FEDERAL AGENTS WORRY IT COULD BE HERE SOON. >> ONCE PEOPLE HAVE CROSSED THE THRESHOLD TO THE DISEASE OF ADDICTION, THEY CAN CONTROL. THEY HAVE TO USE IT. >> THIS DOCTOR KNOWS ADDICTION AND ITS GRIPPING HOLD. >> IT IS LIKE A MAGIC FOR THEY CAN'T RESIST. THE CRAVINGS ARE VERY REAL. EVERYBODY HAS EXPERIENCED HUNGER. IT IS A DRUG HUNGER, BUT IT IS WORSE THAN HUNGER FOR FOOD. >> SHE WORKS AT THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN AND TREATS DRUG ADDICTED VETERANS AT THE V.A. NOW THERE IS A DRUG SO SMALL AND POWERFUL, THAT IT REALLY SCARES HER. >> THE MOST DANGEROUS PART IS YOU JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU GET. >> IT IS AN ANIMAL TRANQUILIZER USED TO KNOCK OUT ELEPHANTS. NOW IT IS BEING CUT INTO DRUGS. THE PROBLEM IS MOST USERS AREN'T ASKING FOR IT, AND MOST DON'T KNOW THEY ARE TAKING IT. TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF HOW POTENT AND DANGEROUS THIS DRUG CAN BE. WE HAVE THIS PENNY AS REFERENCE. IMAGINE THIS ASSAULT IS THE DRUGS. JUST A FEW GRAINS WORTH COULD KILL YOU. >> THAT IS WHY SO MANY ARE DYING FROM CARFENTENOL OVER DOSES. THE DEADLY TREND IS MOVING IN THIS DIRECTION. >> WE HAVE SEEN IT APPEAR IN OTHER MIDWEST STATES. UNFORTUNATELY IT MAY BE A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE IT HITS WISCONSIN. >> SYNTHETIC DRUGS LIKE THIS OR MADE IN CHINA, SHIPPED TO MEXICO AND THEN SMUGGLED INTO THE U.S. LIKE HERRON. MILWAUKEE COUNTY INVESTIGATORS NOW HAVE A PURE SAMPLE OF IT TO TEST. WE ARE ONLY SHOWING YOU PICKS BECAUSE THE DRUG IS SO DANGEROUS FIRST RESPONDERS ARE AT RISK. >> A LITTLE DUST UP, A LITTLE PLUME IN THE AIR AND INHALATION OF A VERY SMALL AMOUNT OF THESE SUBSTANCES CAN LEAD TO DEATH. >> THESE STARTLING IMAGES OF OVERDOSES ARE BECOMING MORE COMMON. >> IT IS SO POWERFUL THE DRUG OFTEN ISN'T ENOUGH. >> THEY ARE GIVE OUTS THOSE RESCUE KITS. WE KNOW THAT FOLKS WHO OVER DOSE MAY NEED MUCH MORE THAN WHAT IS IN ONE DUG. >> WE DUG THROUGH MILWAUKEE COUNTY DEATH RECORDS. WE FOUND RECORDS WHERE PATIENTS USED NARCAN, SOMETIMES SEVERAL DOSES THAT DIDN'T WORK. AT LEAST 57 PEOPLE IN MILWAUKEE COUNTY DIED FR FENTYNOL DOSES THIS YEAR ALONE. THEY ARE CONCERNED IT IS GETTING WORSE. >> THE ADDICTION THAT WAS CREATED WILL PEAK IN PROBABLY ANOTHER TWO OR THREE YEARS. THEN HOPEFULLY IT WILL GET BETTER. >> THE REASON THE DRUG IS APPEALING IS HOW MUCH MONEY THEY CAN MAKE. THIS SMALL BOTTLE IS ENOUGH TO MAKE UPWARDS OF 50 MILLION DOSES.
A drug used to knock out elephants is being blamed dozens of deaths in the Midwest. Drug Enforcement Agency officials worry it could be in Wisconsin soon. Carfentanil is so deadly, a few grains of salt worth of the drug can kill someone. It is significantly more powerful than Fentanyl, which has killed at least 57 people in Milwaukee County this year."A little dust-up, a little plume in the air and inhalation of a very small amount of these substances can lead to death," DEA Agent Bob Bell said. Carfentanil has similar effects on drug users as prescription pain pills. It's being cut into heroin or pressed into pills. Often times, drug users aren't asking for it, and don't know they're taking the drug. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office now has a pure sample of Carfentanil to test in overdose patients. The drug is so potent, DEA worries about the safety of its agents and emergency services. Only protected chemists should handle it, agents said.Life-saving drugs like Nalaxone, known under the brand name Narcan, have been used to treat opioid overdose patients. Carfentanil is often too potent for Narcan. Overdose kits, which have recently been handed out in Fond du Lac, may not save someone overdosing on Carfentanil. "There's this whole initiative of giving out those rescue kits," Dr. Mary-Anne Kowol at the Medical College of Wisconsin said. "We know that folks who overdose on Fentanyls may need much more than what's in one kit."An Associated Press investigation found Chinese companies are willing to ship Carfentanil online for as little as $2,750 a kilogram, no questions asked. That amount is enough to make millions of doses."If we can work with China to turn the spigot off, we think we can have a big impact on supply," Bell said. The DEA has been working to control Fentanyl-related compounds in China. In October 2015,the Chinese government restricted 116 chemicals, which dramatically lowered their appearance in the U.S., agents said.MAP: Fentanyl Deaths in Milwaukee County, Jan-Aug. 2016
A drug used to knock out elephants is being blamed dozens of deaths in the Midwest. Drug Enforcement Agency officials worry it could be in Wisconsin soon.
Carfentanil is so deadly, a few grains of salt worth of the drug can kill someone. It is significantly more powerful than Fentanyl, which has killed at least 57 people in Milwaukee County this year.
Carfentanil to blame for two more Milwaukee County deaths, medical examiner says
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Milwaukee County fentanyl deaths up 223 percent in one year, medical examiner says
Nurse explains fentanyl addiction, how she broke free
Prosecutor: Fentanyl 50 to 80 times more potent than morphine
Fentanyl users don't know what they're getting
"A little dust-up, a little plume in the air and inhalation of a very small amount of these substances can lead to death," DEA Agent Bob Bell said.
Carfentanil has similar effects on drug users as prescription pain pills. It's being cut into heroin or pressed into pills. Often times, drug users aren't asking for it, and don't know they're taking the drug.
The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office now has a pure sample of Carfentanil to test in overdose patients. The drug is so potent, DEA worries about the safety of its agents and emergency services. Only protected chemists should handle it, agents said.
Life-saving drugs like Nalaxone, known under the brand name Narcan, have been used to treat opioid overdose patients. Carfentanil is often too potent for Narcan. Overdose kits, which have recently been handed out in Fond du Lac, may not save someone overdosing on Carfentanil.
"There's this whole initiative of giving out those rescue kits," Dr. Mary-Anne Kowol at the Medical College of Wisconsin said. "We know that folks who overdose on Fentanyls may need much more than what's in one kit."
An Associated Press investigation found Chinese companies are willing to ship Carfentanil online for as little as $2,750 a kilogram, no questions asked. That amount is enough to make millions of doses.
"If we can work with China to turn the spigot off, we think we can have a big impact on supply," Bell said.
The DEA has been working to control Fentanyl-related compounds in China. In October 2015,the Chinese government restricted 116 chemicals, which dramatically lowered their appearance in the U.S., agents said.
MAP: Fentanyl Deaths in Milwaukee County, Jan-Aug. 2016