VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate is raising concerns about the number of overdose deaths they've seen in the city this August.
According to officials with the Virginia Beach Police Department (VBPD), the city recorded 33 overdoses in the month of August alone, which is not an abnormal amount of narcotics activity. What is concerning, however, is the number that has turned deadly. Eight of those overdoses are now fatal, three of which have come within one weekend.
“What we see is that most of our overdose deaths are heroin and fentanyl-related," Neudigate told 13News Now. "Rarely do we see this combination with crack cocaine, so it was a glaring beacon for us. This is an abnormality for [Virginia Beach]. If you think you’re just using crack cocaine, you may not be."
All three of the deaths within the 24-hour window, according to Neudigate, are a result of what is believed to be crack cocaine that is suspected to have been laced with fentanyl.
“We usually do not see crack cocaine usage into overdose deaths. So we suspect crack cocaine is laced with fentanyl, we’ve sent to the lab, but we have people dying in Virginia Beach, so we don’t have time to wait for those lab results," Neudigate said.
According to data from the Virginia Department of Health, Virginia Beach saw 114 drug overdose deaths in the year 2021, more than 30 of which were reported as cocaine-related deaths. Virginia as a state recorded more than 2,500 overdose deaths in 2021.
"The fact is that it's younger folks, and younger folks are not within the normal range. Something is going on, not indicative of what we normally see at the beach," Neudigate said.
'I wasn't surprised': Mother of overdose victim speaks out
Sharon Adams has slowly learned to accept the fact that her daughter, Debra Welsh, will forever be a statistic.
"I said 'I will get you to rehab you finish the program. I'll be on the other side to rebuild your life.' That was the last time we talked, she was begging to come home and I couldn’t do it. The next day I got the call she overdosed," she told 13News Now.
Welsh died in June of a drug overdose after a five-year battle with addiction. According to Adams, the toxicology report indicated it was due to a mix of heroin and fentanyl.
While Debra's death happened weeks before the latest VBPD report, Adams said her daughter will be a statistic in the 2023 calendar year for overdose deaths.
"I can’t explain what I saw before my own eyes, of how she left us," Adams said.
She added the recent VBPD report did not surprise her to see but only reinforced the prevalence of narcotics in the community affecting people like her daughter.
"My life will never be the same," she said.