On L.A.’s Skid Row, Synthetic Drug ‘Spice’ Suspected Of Series of Multi-Patient Illnesses
Police and fire officials suspect this cheap illicit drug may be responsible. It mimics the effects of marijuana but can be much stronger.
Los Angeles Times:
Another Multi-Patient Illness Strikes Skid Row As 14 Are Transported To Hospitals
Three days after 18 people were rushed to hospitals from downtown’s skid row, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to another multi-patient medical emergency there on Monday. The patients may have shared an illicit drug or other intoxicant, said Margaret Stewart of the Los Angeles Fire Department, but the source of the illnesses has not yet been identified. The Fire Department received a 911 call at 10:21 a.m. that led them to 429 E 5th St., where they found multiple people suffering from a variety of symptoms. (Evans, 8/22)
KPCC:
Audio: 'Spice' Suspected To Have Sickened More People On Skid Row
A synthetic street drug is believed to have sickened people in Los Angeles' Skid Row area for the second time in the last three days. Since Friday, more than 50 people have ended up in the hospital with similar symptoms. Police and fire officials suspect the culprit is a drug called “spice." It’s a cheap synthetic that mimics the effects of marijuana, but can be much stronger. Authorities are asking those with loved ones on Skid Row to re-engage with them and bring them home, LAPD Capt. Don Graham told KPCC. (Agullera, 8/22)