VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Overdoses are now the leading cause of death in Volusia County.
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The information came from a report that the medical examiner’s office will present next week, but Channel 9 got an early look at it Wednesday afternoon.
The presentation shows overdose that deaths were up 15% in 2021 from the year prior. The majority of those overdoses and overdose deaths happened in Daytona Beach.
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Getting fentanyl off the streets has been an ongoing battle for Sheriff Mike Chitwood. He said the drug is flooding in across the U.S.-Mexico border and even being ordered online.
The sheriff’s office has partnered with other local and federal agencies to get a handle on it by doubling the number of search warrants executed since last year.
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“Our men and women in narcotics are just slaying it, but the problem is there are so many people out there. It’s such a bigger conglomerate of people that are operating,” he said.
The number of overdose deaths increased from 305 in 2020, to 331 in 2021, to 164 so far this year.
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