PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Multnomah County officials confirmed at least one death related to the flesh-eating street drug commonly referred to as “tranq.”
“Tranq” is a street drug that’s mixed with the animal tranquilizer Xylazine and potent opioids like fentanyl.
Officials said “tranq” was discovered in the system of someone who died from an overdose in late 2022.
On Wednesday, the county alerted healthcare providers and physicians in the metro area that the drug is on the streets of Portland.
Xylazine is not FDA-approved for human use and is not safe for people as it causes prolonged sedation and can cause severe skin wounds.
Earlier this month, the Biden administration declared fentanyl laced with “tranq” as an emerging drug threat. However, the Portland Police Bureau says the presence of the drug in Portland is news to them.
The confirmed death this week is the second death they believe is linked to the drug. The first death occurred in Spring 2021. The death reported this week was in September 2022. Wait times for toxicology reports makes the process for identifying these deaths take longer.
The Health Department has yet to release the name, age, sex or housing status of the person who died.
PDX All Saints Director Kristle Delihanty works with people who are struggling with homelessness and addiction and says they’ve seen it for a year, and it’s recently become more common.
Delihanty said she’s convinced it’s been around for so long because the wounds associated with it appear to kill the tissue in people’s bodies after prolonged use, and those experiences have become increasingly difficult for Delihanty’s organization to help.
“Not even people who are regular fentanyl users – so it’s in all drugs – are experiencing wounds that antibiotics aren’t working for,” Delihanty said.
Teresa Everson, the deputy health officer at the Multnomah County Health Department, said the drugs in Tranq make overdose “a little bit more likely and a little bit more severe.”
“Xylazine also has these potentials that can make you very sleepy, sometimes for longer than even fentanyl can, and it can reduce your body’s drive, your natural drive to breathe,” Everson said
Everson said that in extreme cases, limbs need amputated because of the amount of dead tissue.
“We don’t necessarily think it’s being intentionally hidden, but we also don’t think that people can know everything that’s in what they purchase,” Everson said.
The fentanyl overdose reversal drug naloxone known as Narcan is not as effective with xylazine-laced drugs. Still, Evanson says it’s important for people to try to use naloxone in the case that a person may be overdosing.