Uptick in overdoses has coroner concerned

TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI) – Tippecanoe County Coroner Donna Avolt is warning the public about what could be a bad batch of heroin.

Avolt said there have been seven heroin overdoses in the past seven to 10 days in Tippecanoe County. Five were fatal.

“We have concerns that there is heroin that could not be cut correctly,” Avolt said, according to WISH-TV sister station WLFI News.

She is waiting for toxicology reports on some of the cases, but is asking media to alert the public to the problem.

Avolt said Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, might be experiencing the same problem.

In late February, Champaign Police Chief Anthony Cobb issued a news release regarding 10 overdoses there in just over a week.

Cobb called that “an unusually high number” for the city. In that case, police said they believed the deaths may be the result of a particularly lethal form of heroin.

In Tippecanoe County, Avolt said the most recent overdose was Friday morning.