Eight drug overdoses relating to powder sold as heroin reported in Cork in 36 hours

The executive has now issued an extreme-risk drug warning after a nitazene-type substance had been linked with what it described as “recent cases of serious overdose in Cork city”. Picture Denis Minihane.
The executive has now issued an extreme-risk drug warning after a nitazene-type substance had been linked with what it described as “recent cases of serious overdose in Cork city”.

The HSE described nitazene as “a strong synthetic opioid that can cause serious overdoses, hospitalisations, and drug-related deaths”.
HSE general manager social inclusion and primary care for the Cork and Kerry region, David Lane, told
that following the overdoses, analysis had been conducted by Forensic Science Ireland which confirmed the presence of trace amounts of the substance in the samples taken.“We have seen eight overdoses in Cork in the last two days, and one of the things that we want to get out there as a message to services and to people using illegal substances is that this is circulating in the city and to just be extra careful at this time,” said Mr Lane.
The extreme risk warning follows dozens of serious overdoses in Dublin in the past month, and Mr Lane said that services in Cork had been “on tenterhooks” expecting the contaminated drugs to arrive in Cork.
Local wrap around s in place with @cldatf to respond to the emergence of nitazenes on the Cork drug market.@corkcitycouncil putting alerts in public places throughout the City today to raise awareness of current risk and recommending #HarmReduction pic.twitter.com/HEZdxA01wW
— HSE Drugs.ie (@drugsdotie) December 8, 2023
The HSE said that the drug can be found in pills or powder, with current overdoses being linked to powder.