BART Police Use Overdose Antidote Narcan Twice In One Day
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- BART Police have been carrying the opioid antidote Narcan for less than a year now, but they recently had to use it twice in the same day.
It's an emergency life-saving medication that can stop an opioid overdose in a matter of minutes. With the steep rise of drug use in and around BART stations, BART police are on alert. Tuesday's double incident is a tragically prime example of the need for Narcan.
"We had two instances where BART police officers had to use Narcan to administer medical aid to a person apparently suffering an overdose," said BART spokesperson Jim Allison.
The first was in the morning at the Glen Park station. Officers arrived and found the victim unconsciousand not breathing. They administered the Narcan and called an ambulance. The second case came shortly afterwards, miles away at the San Bruno BART station.
Allison said, "It's unusual to have two in one day, but it not unusual for people to have overdoses."
Dominicqueca Turner says she rides BART a lot and she wants to see more Narcan.
"Hopefully they keep doing that because one of my friends died at the Bay Fair station from an overdose, so hopefully they step up their game," Turner said.
BART says they have used Narcan nearly fifty times since last spring.
"What I can really tell you is, is it's the rise of Fentanyl. And Fentanyl, for some people who are addicted, they sometimes are purchasing drugs that they don't even know have been cut with Fentanyl," said BART Board Member Bevan Dufty.
BART says their new Ambassadors also carry Narcan but there are only five ambassador teams that only operate on certain trains and only during the evening hours.
