First use of Heroin antidote for police in Burlington County
This report comes from Joel Bewley at the Burlington County Prosecutor’s office:
Municipal officers from the Riverside and Riverton police departments became the first in Burlington County to administer the heroin overdose antidote Narcan on July 20 by reviving two individuals in separate incidents hours apart.
“The families of these two individuals might be making funeral arrangements if not for the accessibility of these life-saving kits to our first responders,” said Burlington County Prosecutor Robert D. Bernardi. “The arriving officers performed exactly as needed — they assessed the situation, made effective use of their training and prevented two tragedies from occurring.”
The first use of Narcan occurred at approximately 3:30 p.m. after Cinnaminson Police Department Patrolmen Kevin Bohn, Richard Calabrese and Thomas Lillagore responded to the 1500 block of Broad Street for a well-being check. Upon their arrival they found an adult male unconscious and lying on his back. The man had a pulse but was experiencing labored breathing in an irregular, gasping pattern. Cinnaminson patrol officers began rescue breathing on the subject. The residence is located on the municipal border with Riverton Borough. The Riverton Borough Police Department responded to offer assistance.
Riverton Police Department Patrolman Jeff Walker administered Narcan on the subject who then immediately awoke and began breathing on his own. The subject was transported to an area hospital for a medical evaluation by Palmyra Riverton Cinnaminson Emergency Medical Services. Patrolman Walker had completed his departmental training on the use of Narcan five days earlier.
“With the ongoing heroin epidemic Narcan is invaluable,” Riverton Borough Police Chief John Shaw said. “As a responding officer it is always valuable to have additional tools to utilize to perform our jobs at the highest level possible. The team work that was demonstrated by the Cinnaminson and Riverton Police officers on scene saved the life of this individual. I’ve always respected the mutual cooperation of our local police departments and this is a fine example of that.”
The second incident occurred at approximately 10:40 p.m. on Delaware Avenue in Riverside. Riverside Police Department Patrolmen Anthony Cicali and Robert Settimio responded to a call for an adult male suffering from a possible diabetic episode.
Upon arrival the officers found the subject to be unconscious, unresponsive and breathing in a labored manner. It was determined that the victim may be suffering from a heroin overdose. The officers administered Narcan to the subject and after a few seconds he began to slowly regain consciousness. The Delran Emergency Squad, along with Medics, performed advanced treatment, stabilized the subject and transported him to a hospital for observation.
“I believe had it not been for the quick action of the officers involved the victim in this incident may have sustained life threatening injuries, possibly even death,” said Riverside Police Capt. William Eliason. “The mission of our officers is to help the public in any way possible and is our highest priority. Police throughout the State of New Jersey have seen a dramatic rise in drug overdose deaths, and Riverside has not been spared. The Narcan program will undoubtedly save lives. It is the hope of the community and the Riverside Police Department that people suffering from any type of drug or alcohol addiction seek help, and for bystanders to know that they will not be charged with any type of criminal offense for calling 9–1–1 for assistance for any type of possible drug overdose they witness.”
For many people who fatally overdose on heroin, death comes because they have stopped breathing.
The Narcan antidote provides the person with the ability to breathe again. After it is administered, overdose victims will be given a medical evaluation, according to the antidote program’s protocol.
A total of 209 Narcan kits, which is the aerosol form of the drug Naloxone, have been distributed to 30 municipal police departments in Burlington County as well as the Burlington County Sheriff’s Department.
Last month, Gov. Chris Christie announced the statewide expansion of the heroin antidote pilot program that was authorized in April for Monmouth and Ocean counties. After receiving an endorsement for the initiative from the Burlington County Police Chiefs’ Association, Prosecutor Bernardi authorized using approximately $6,500 in drug forfeiture money to fund the initial purchase of the kits.
Police departments from the following towns have agreed to participate in the program: Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, Burlington City, Chesterfield, Cinnaminson, Delanco, Delran, Eastampton, Edgewater Park, Evesham, Fieldsboro, Florence, Lumberton, Mansfield, Maple Shade, Medford Lakes, Medford Township, Moorestown, Mount Holly, Mount Laurel, New Hanover, North Hanover, Palmyra, Pemberton Borough, Pemberton Township, Riverside, Riverton, Springfield, Westampton and Willingboro.
