Los Alamitos Discards Over 200 Pounds Of Unused Prescription Meds

LOS ALAMITOS, CA — On Saturday, a steady parade of vehicles drove to McAuliffe Middle School for the annual Prescription Drug Takeback Day, thanks to a partnership between the Los Alamitos Police Department, The Los Alamitos Education Foundation and the U. S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Approximately 200 pounds of drugs were collected and stored for safe transport to a facility where they will be destroyed, the Los Alamitos Unified School District said.

Residents dropped off parcels of pharmaceuticals in everything from lunch bags to large boxes during the four-hour Saturday event. Those unwanted medications were put in boxes to be shipped south to a special incinerator in San Diego, to be destroyed, Chris Vlasic, the district’s Director of Safety and Personnel Services said.

Vlasic, with Los Alamitos Police Capt. Chris Karrer and DEA Agent Carlos Mendoza packed the drugs into 20 large boxes and sealed them for shipment to a special incinerator in San Diego.

Drug take-back days are held in the school district twice a year and are part of a national effort to prevent prescription drugs from being thrown in the trash or dumped down the drain because they end up contaminating drinking water supplies.

Turning back unused drugs also reduces the chance that children and pets will accidentally ingest them.

Photos, courtesy Los Alamitos Unified School District