Cape Cod Opioid Crisis: 5 Dead, 17 Saved In Yarmouth

YARMOUTH, MA — Yarmouth police this week said five people have died of opioid overdoses in town so far in 2017 as a lethal batch of heroin circulates on Cape Cod. Yarmouth police said in that same time period, first responders encountered 24 people suffering from overdoses and 17 of them were saved with Narcan, an overdoses antidote. (Subscribe to Cape Cod news alerts — Barnstable, Falmouth and Martha's Vineyard — for updates on this story and more breaking news. iPhone/iPad users: download the new Patch app.)

"The heroin epidemic ... is showing little sign of slowing down," Yarmouth police said in a statement. Earlier this month, Falmouth police issued an alert for a deadly batch of heroin blamed for two deaths and 15 overdoses. Thirteen of those individuals were saved with Narcan, Falmouth police said.

"It is believed that a lethal mix of heroin/fentanyl has reached our community and is responsible for this spike," Falmouth police said in a statement. "This significantly increases the risk of death to those already in peril."

Police in both communities blamed fentanyl mixed with heroin for many of the deaths. Fentanyl is an opioid that can hundreds of times more powerful — and deadly — than heroin.

Yarmouth police said they hold weekly "Learn to Cope" group therapy sessions every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at its headquarters. Narcan is available for free at those meetings.

"Together…we can recover," Yarmouth police said.

The Massachusetts Substance Abuse Helpline is one resource for those struggling with opioid addiction. Its hotline is 800-327-5050.

Related

Falmouth Police: Lethal Heroin Batch Kills 2 Amid 15 Overdoses

Photo: Shutterstock