Addiction specialists in Trumbull County raise concerns about alarming new trends in deaths from drug overdoses as numbers appear to be on track to have the highest recorded fatal overdoses in five years.

Reports from the Trumbull County Coroner's office show 30 accidental overdose deaths this year involving fentanyl-laced stimulants. In addition, officials say 21 deaths are currently pending as drug related.

Sixty percent of overdose fatalities this year were male and 40% female, with an age demographic of 27-64.

Within the verified overdoses thus far statistics show fentanyl-laced cocaine accounts for 33% of deaths while 7% died from pure cocaine.  Notably, though, none of the overdose deaths were from heroin. 

Compared to 2020-2021 statistics show a steady uptick of deaths from cocaine.

According to toxicology results from the Trumbull County Coroners office; in 2020 cocaine accounted for 1% of overdose deaths. That number quadrupled in 2021 and so far, in 2022, the percentage of deaths from pure cocaine is now 7 percent.  

With the onslaught of drug fatalities, April Caraway, executive director of Trumbull County Mental Health and Recovery Board, tells 21 News Narcan kits, which are free from the health department, can save a life. However, people need to remember that Narcan reverses the effects of an opioid overdose. It would not have any effect on a cocaine overdose. 

Data from The Trumbull County Coroner office shows the fluctuating but steady increase of overdose deaths by year :
2017 -  38
2018 -  17
2019 -  45
2020 - 33
2021 -  49
2022-  30 deaths so far, with an additional 21 deaths that are considered to be probable overdoses, but which are still listed as pending.