Pubdate: Tue, 14 Jul 2015 Source: Daily News, The (Newburyport, MA) Copyright: 2015 Eagle Tribune Publishing Company Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/k3oQxseR Website: http://www.newburyportnews.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/693 Author: Angeljean Chiaramida IN SEABROOK, TWO SAVED FROM DRUG OVERDOSES SEABROOK -- Two overdoses within 30 minutes of each other Friday morning indicate the heroin epidemic isn't letting up. Seabrook's firefighters responded and were able to save both lives, according to Seabrook police Acting Sgt. Kevin Gelineau. The situation spotlights what's still happening every week in town, in spite of prevention efforts mounted by police, the courts, advocates, the media and others. On Friday, one overdose took place in a private residence, but the other was all too public. The victim was in a car on Route 1, when family members realized there was a problem, pulled over and called for help, said Gelineau, who believes the drug involved in both cases was heroin. "They were both brought back by emergency responders from the Seabrook Fire Department who used Narcan," said Gelieau, who answered both calls. "This is just a sample. We are answering several calls a week for drug overdoses if you take all shifts. There's more and more drug use." One of Friday's victims agreed to being transported to Exeter Hospital, Gelineau said. The other individual who was in the car refused transport by EMTs. The victim was eventually taken to the hospital, Gelineau said, which is what's needed after such a life-threatening incident. "Some people think all they need is Narcan," Gelineau said. "That's not true. Please tell people that overdose victims need to seek medical care from a properly equipped medical facility. Narcan (an opiate blocker) isn't enough." Unable to identify the victims at this time, Gelineau said, police intend to charge one of them with possession of illegal drugs. Both victims had previous convictions and were on either probation or parole, he said. Using illegal drugs violates the terms of probation and parole and can send individuals back to jail or at least placed on a hold for further investigation. Seabrook attorney Jeff Brown is a member of the New Hampshire Parole Board. He said that the procedure involved is for probation officers to place offending parolees on a 72-hour hold until the decision is made whether to sign a warrant to rescind probation or parole, sending them back to jail. "I sign several warrants of this nature every week," Brown said. "And more and more relate to drug use, such as this." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom