The students were staying at an Airbnb in Fort Lauderdale when they overdosed, authorities said.
Six college students were hospitalized after overdosing on cocaine laced with fentanyl, an extremely dangerous narcotic, authorities said Friday.
First responders were summoned to a short-term rental house in Wilton Manors, Florida, where several students on vacation during Spring Break had collapsed, officials said.
“There were multiple people in cardiac arrest in the front yard. Narcan was deployed as quickly as possible,” said Fire Chief Stephen Gollan, referring to a prescription medicine used to treat opioid overdoses. “This is extremely alarming to us,” he said.
One student had to be intubated and is in critical condition, the fire chief said.
"These are healthy young adults, college students in the prime of their life," Gollan said. "Getting this drug into their system, it’s unknown what the recovery will be on the critical individual."
One victim has been released from a hospital after receiving treatment, he said.
Two of the students had tried to perform CPR on the four initial victims, but were overcome by fentanyl, which is toxically potent. It is 50 times more powerful than heroin, and 100 times more powerful than morphine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The opiate is used to treat extreme pain and slows breathing and heart rates.
Wilton Manors police later sent out a warning to other young vacationers now in south Florida.
“WMPD wants to warn spring breakers about the dangers of using illicit drugs & to avoid mixing drugs with alcohol or other forms of drugs,” department officials tweeted. “Protect yourself from the dangers of fentanyl.”
The names of the students and which college they attended were not released by authorities. An investigation is ongoing.
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