Person Suffering Overdose At Train Station Revived With NARCAN

SAN MATEO, CA — Officers responding to a suspected drug overdose Saturday at the train station revived and saved a man's life after administering NARCAN, an opioid overdose-reversal drug, according to the San Mateo Police Department.

Called July 6 shortly before 8:30 p.m. to the station at 2 North B Street, police found the male victim unresponsive on the platform, not breathing and laying in a pool of vomit, the agency said.

"Acting on their training, officers recognized this to be a possible overdose and administered NARCAN, successfully reviving him before he was transported to a local hospital," the department said, adding that the overdose was from fentanyl, a "dangerous drug (that) can be 80-100 times stronger than morphine."

"Narcotics dealers add fentanyl to heroin to increase its potency, resulting in potentially deadly overdoses," police said. "Our officers are trained to detect an opioid emergency and (are) equipped with NARCAN, a nasal spray designed to counteract the life-threatening effects of an opioid overdose. Police are often the first emergency-responders to arrive on scene, and tools like NARCAN allow our officers to administer lifesaving efforts before trained medical personnel arrive."

Police officials said that those experiencing drug addiction need resources and tools "to pull them away from narcotics dependency."

Anyone who knows someone suffering from substance abuse and in need of resources can call Star Vista San Mateo County 24/7 on the crisis hotline at 650-579-0350 or visit https://goo.gl/AtQVxG.

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