Heroin overdoses, drug-related deaths in Ocean County skyrocket

The Ocean County prosecutor is sounding the alarm ? heroin overdoses and drug related deaths are climbing at alarming rates.Last year, there were 56 overdoses reported in the county but that number will

News 12 Staff

Aug 23, 2006, 10:15 PM

Updated 6,547 days ago

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The Ocean County prosecutor is sounding the alarm ? heroin overdoses and drug related deaths are climbing at alarming rates.Last year, there were 56 overdoses reported in the county but that number will likely be eclipsed, the prosecutor says. It?s only August and authorities are already reporting 53 such deaths. Of those Dover has the most, followed by Brick, Manchester and Seaside Heights. The problem isn?t limited to any particular age group. Victims range from 16 to 78.Authorities say the drug of choice ? and the one that?s killed the most people ? is Columbian heroin, followed by alcohol, methadone and cocaine. Police say heroine is so popular because New Jersey has the highest, purest, cheapest heroin of any place in the world. Those who track substance abuse say they?ve also seen a sharp increase in the number of people seeking help to battle their addictions.


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