By Times Staff
At approximately 9:45 a.m. on April 3, the Alexandria Police Department responded to Alexandria City High School following reports of a female student found unconscious in the school’s gym. ACHS Principal Peter Balas released the following statement to school families after the incident.
“At approximately 9:45 a.m. today, administrators at the Alexandria City High School (ACHS) King Street campus called emergency medical services for a student who experienced a medical emergency at school. Emergency medical services responded quickly and transported the student to the hospital. Several students were present during this medical emergency, in which life-saving measures had to be administered.”
According to an APD dispatch call that was publicly available on openmhz.com, the student was believed to be “turning blue,” “seizing and barely breathing.”
APD could not confirm, but school officials on the dispatch call said an officer administered Narcan.
Later in evening at 5:38 p.m., the the City of Alexandria issued a release warning of drug dangers.
“The City of Alexandria asks the community to be vigilant about the dangers of illicit drugs following two recent suspected drug overdoses involving school-aged youth.
Illicit drugs are often laced with fentanyl, an inexpensive substitute that is up to 100 times more potent than morphine and can be deadly. City officials are asking for the public’s help in understanding the prevalence of fentanyl overdoses; how they can be prevented, recognized and treated; as well as speaking with people, especially youth, regarding the dangers of all illicit drugs.
Resources available to help combat the national opioid epidemic include Narcan, a safe, easy-to-administer nasal spray that everyone can have on hand. Narcan can be obtained at no charge by emailing opioids@alexandriava.
The City also encourages residents to dispose of expired or unneeded medications to help prevent overdoses. Several medication disposal boxes are located throughout the City.
If you or someone you care about needs help, please call 703.746.3400 to speak with staff at the Department of Community and Human Services. Treatment for opioid use can be accessed by calling the City’s Opioid Treatment Program intake line at 703.746.3610. Additional treatment options can be found at samhsa.gov or by calling 800.662.HELP (4357).
For life-threatening situations, call 9-1-1 immediately. If you have information regarding the illegal sale of opioids or other drugs, please call the Alexandria Police Department at 703.746.6277.
This story is developing and the Times will update as information becomes available.
