19 killed by elephant tranquilizer so potent it's used as chemical weapon

[NelsonG]

Dozens of people in the U.S. have died from carfentanil, a seriously potent elephant tranquilizer often cut into heroin and other street drugs, in the past few months.

At least 19 have been killed in Wayne County, Michigan since July, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) said Thursday. Eight more have reportedly perished in the Cincinnati area.

Carfentanil is a seriously deadly substance. It's 100 times stronger than fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that killed Prince and is itself up to 50 times stronger than heroin. It's also 10,000 times stronger than morphine.

It's so potent, in fact, that it was viewed as a chemical weapon before being discovered by drug dealers. And it's being freely exported to the U.S. from China, a new Associated Press investigation has revealed. Read more...

More about China, Drugs, Opioids, Carfentanil, and Us World

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