Health authorities are issuing a warning about a new and on the rise drug. Called the “Gray Death”, this mix of opioids is extremely dangerous and lethal and is unfortunately spreading.
According to authorities, Georgia, Alabama, and Ohio reported the highest number of overdose episodes caused by this combo.
What is the Gray Death?
The new and dangerous mix was named after its physical characteristics, besides its dangerous effects. It seems to have both the consistency and the aspect of a concrete mix. Its composition also varies, which led to even more problems.
Gray death is, in fact, a combination of more than just one drug. Usually, it’s a combination of several opioids, which can lead to fatal effects. Most commonly, it was found to contain heroin, carfentanil, the opioid U-47700, and fentanyl. Carfentanil is occasionally used as a tranquilizer, but only for large animals, for example, elephants.
“Gray death is one of the scariest combinations that I have ever seen in nearly 20 years of forensic chemistry drug analysis,” says Deneed Kilcrease.
She is the manager of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Chemistry Department. According to an earlier press releases, authorities pointed out another major problem with this drug. Sometimes, specialists found this new mix in marked bags that had stamped logos, and which imitated a heroin sale.
This led them to believe that some users did not even know what they were buying. Or that they were about to consume another drug. Specialists also consider that most users are still in the dark about the gray death’s concentration or ingredients. In turn, this makes the drug’s effects even more dangerous, more likely particularly lethal.
Reports show that the gray death has been either injected, swallowed, snorted, or smoked. Over the past three months, reports have tied more than 50 overdose cases to this new mix in Georgia alone. Ohio reported that it is facing a similar problem.
Now, authorities are on high alert and have issued a press release on this highly dangerous combo. They are particularly concerned as the country is passing through a nationwide opioids epidemic.
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