Burlington Police Report Two Heroin Overdoses Hours Apart | Off Message

Friday, June 17, 2016

Burlington Police Report Two Heroin Overdoses Hours Apart

Posted By on Fri, Jun 17, 2016 at 12:57 PM

Burlington Police Report Two Heroin Overdoses Hours Apart
Matthew Thorsen
Bulk heroin known as "fingers" seized by Burlington police.
One man is dead and a second survived after two more suspected heroin overdoses in Burlington on Thursday just hours apart, police said.

A 28-year-old man survived a suspected overdose after being found around 9:20 a.m. Thursday at a North Winooski Avenue home. He was taken to the University of Vermont Medical Center for evaluation, police said.

Around 2 p.m., a 27-year-old man died after an apparent overdose in an Archibald Street home, police said. Police said they used naloxone, an overdose-reversing drug now carried by Burlington cops, to try to revive the man. 

Detective Lt. Shawn Burke said the incidents do not appear to be related. 
The news comes a week after Burlington police said that fentanyl, a powerful synthetic painkiller that has caused overdoses across the country, was responsible for a spate of three overdoses in the Queen City. All three victims survived those overdoses, police said.

Burke said the department is awaiting toxicology tests to determine whether fentanyl was involved in this week's overdoses.

There were 105 drug-related deaths in Vermont in 2015, according to the Vermont Department of Health, up from 97 in 2014.

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Mark Davis

Mark Davis was a Seven Days staff writer 2013-2018.

About the Artists

Matthew Thorsen

Matthew Thorsen

Bio:
Matthew Thorsen was a photographer for Seven Days 1995-2018. Read all about his life and work here.
Caleb Kenna

Caleb Kenna

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Caleb Kenna is a freelance photographer and certified drone pilot based in Middlebury. He thrives on hot coffee, early sunrises and exploring Vermont's back roads.