Three babies overdosed — one fatally — on fentanyl left unsecured inside three Everett homes in less than one week, the city's Fire and Police departments said Thursday.
Everett police did not release detailed information about the overdoses — including whether any parents have been arrested or charged with a crime — because of active investigations. Investigators don't believe the overdoses are connected, the Everett Police Department said in a statement.
The three incidents, as reported by police:
Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid up to 50 times as potent as heroin, has fueled a skyrocketing number of overdose deaths in Washington and across the country. A record 1,082 people fatally overdosed on fentanyl in Washington last year — a 51% increase over record-setting 2022.
And overdose deaths among children are rapidly multiplying. Washington saw 38 children under 18 die from an opioid-related overdose in 2022 — more than three times as many as in 2019. All but one were tied to synthetic opioids like fentanyl, according to state Department of Health data.
Children are especially vulnerable to overdosing, as ingesting even small amounts of the opioid's residue can be fatal due to their body size and lack of tolerance to the drug. The drug, which is often sold as a small, brightly colored blue pill, can look like candy to babies and children.
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