Park Rangers Credited For Saving Men's Lives Who Had Overdosed

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Two park rangers were recognized for saving two people Aug. 7 by administering Narcan to them during a medical emergency at Rockburn Branch Park in Elkridge. Two men were unconscious from a suspected heroin overdose.

Rangers Tabitha Kanagie and Ian Smith approached the scene and assessed each patient; neither one was breathing or had a pulse and both were blueish in color around the lips. The park rangers began resuscitating the men then administered one dose of Narcan (naloxone) to each and continued with CPR. Eventually, both patients came around.

Howard County Fire and Rescue arrived at approximately 6:30 p.m. and took over life-saving procedures. They delivered more doses of naloxone to the patients and took both patients to Howard County General Hospital.

“In 2021, Narcan was administered in every case of a non-fatal overdose,” Howard County Executive Ball said during a news conference honoring the parkrangers. “During the pandemic, our health department has continued to work with community partners and government departments to train more people in overdose response, including how to administer Narcan in an emergency. These efforts have resulted in real results and lives saved. This situation could have ended much differently if these two rangers had not been trained in our Overdose Response Program and how to administer Narcan. Thank you to our Rangers for their quick action and to the many others who arrived on the scene to help saves lives that day.”

“Tabitha and Ian are true lifesavers,” Howard County Recreation & Parks Director A. Raul Delerme added. “Their extensive training from the department prepared them to react quickly in a stressful situation where seconds made the difference between life and death.”

Kanagie credited the Naxolone training she underwent for knowing how to respond and save the two mens' lives.

“We could not have accomplished what we did without the quick and skillful response of Howard County’s Police and Fire and Rescue and the Naxolone and Naxolone training provided by the Howard County Health Department,” she said.

“As a Howard County resident and a member of the Elkridge community, I would like to express how grateful I am for the positive outcome of this incident,” added Howard County Park Ranger Ian Smith. “I am grateful for the opportunity to give back to my community and grateful to everyone here for their support.”

In 2020, Howard County saw a 43 percent increase in opioid-related deaths compared to 2019, part of a national and statewide trend as the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated opioid and substance misuse. The state saw its highest opioid fatality number to date in 2020 at more than 2,500 deaths statewide. While fatalities at the state level continue to rise, Howard County has seen a drop in fatal overdoses from last year, down more than 70 percent, from 47 to 9.

In the last fiscal year – from July 2020 to July 2021, the Howard County Health Department has:

• Trained nearly 600 people in its Overdose Response Program;
• Distributed 550 Narcan kits; and
• Distributed more than 4,500 Deterra Bags, which allow for safe drug disposal.