Copyright 2006 Chicago Sun-Times, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
By ANNIE SWEENEY
The Chicago Sun Times
The numbers first caught the attention of Chicago Police in February with a spate of apparent drug overdoses near 29th and State.
Cases began sprouting elsewhere, from the Far South Side to the North Shore, and haven’t abated. So far, there have been more than 60 fatal overdoses in Cook County linked to fentanyl, a powerful prescription drug that has turned up in the heroin and cocaine supply in eight states, causing hundreds of deaths.
This week a national conference will be held in Chicago about the phenomenon, which has shocked even longtime investigators.
“In 29 years, I have never seen anything like it,’' said Frank Limon, chief of organized crime for Chicago Police. “In the long-run, there’s got to be some solutions. It’s a problem that needs to be addressed not only on a local but also a national level.’'
Big problem in Detroit, too
Chicago Police formed a task force after the South Side cases. Today, there are two sergeants and 12 detectives assigned to the group, and a new system is in place to track numbers and analyze trends.
Limon gets daily updates from the Chicago Fire Department that includes a map of where ambulances are responding to overdose cases. He also is getting weekly updates from the medical examiner’s office about how many overdoses have been linked to the drug.
Lt. Kevin Sullivan, the fire department’s deputy chief paramedic, said doses of Narcan, which can reverse an overdose, have been increased and hospitals are now alerted immediately if the department is called to respond to a “cluster’’ of cases.
This week’s meeting, hosted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, includes officials from other cities where fentanyl has surfaced. Detroit has had 100 confirmed deaths. The conference will address the public health response to the overdoses, including how better to get help to victims, and the national and international investigations into the source of the fentanyl.