Argentina experiences moments of shock after 23 people died in recent days after consuming adulterated cocaine.
Another 84 people remain hospitalized after ingesting the altered drug.
The alarming event has put the debate on drug addiction on the table and has led the authorities to take urgent action against the gangs dedicated to the sale of narcotics in the provinces of Buenos Aires.
How did the events occur?
The fact set off the alarms of the authorities this Wednesday, February 2, just after the match for the qualifiers for the Qatar 2022 World Cup in which the Argentine team starred.
One day after the sporting event, doctors from the Hurlingham municipal hospital reported the death of four patients who died after ingesting cocaine. That same day, several hospitals in the region reported cases of patients with symptoms of intoxication due to cocaine use.
According to the Argentine authorities, after consuming the drug, which was sold to consumers in a pink nylon wrapper, people they lost consciousness and they presented symptoms such as vomiting, temporary loss of vision, among other reactions, for which it was necessary to take several of them to health centers.
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Initial investigations suggest that the cocaine was mixed with a substance containing opioids which, according to the Mayo Clinic, are a group of pain-relieving medications.
“At lower doses, opioids can make you drowsy, but higher doses can slow your heart and breathing rates, which could cause death”, reports the portal of the Mayo Clinic.
Until now, 23 people died after suffering cardiac arrest, while another 84 people remain hospitalized, 20 of them with a respirator and in critical condition.
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The dramatic testimonies of the victims
Several of the survivors have narrated to different media outlets the hard moments they experienced after consuming the adulterated cocaine.
One of them was Juan, a 28-year-old who told ‘El Clarín’ what happened.
According to the man, after the Argentina national team match, some acquaintances invited him to have a few beers and, later, to smoke something.
After consuming I had a stomach ache, a headache, my vision blurred, I began to vomit
“They invited me to have a beer after the game and they said: ‘Shall we smoke?’ Well come on, I replied”, he counted.
The young man smoked a cigarette. He went home, tried to sleep, and that’s when the nightmare began.
“After consuming I had a stomach ache, a headache, my vision blurred, I began to vomit. I vomited blood last. There I got scared and went to the doctor”, he narrated, adding that he did not know that it was a massive affectation until he saw it on the news the next day.
Several acquaintances from the neighborhood where he lives died after consuming cocaine, according to Juan told the newspaper ‘El Clarín’.
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That of the young man is not the only dramatic testimony of the event. Alfonso Gómez, father of one of those affected by the substance, told the ‘BBC’ chain that he found his son almost dead in his bed.
“When I saw him he was lying on a bed, dead. I moved it and it didn’t react, it was dead”, he told ‘BBC’.
“He told his mother that he was ill, that drool came out of his mouth and he did not wake up,” was another of the testimonies collected by the aforementioned chain.
“I hope for a miracle. He hardly breathed,” said Beatriz Mercado, mother of one of those affected, while waiting for him outside the hospital.
Cocaine investigations
According to the authorities, the cocaine was distributed since Tuesday night in the settlement Villa Gate 8 of the Tres de Febrero municipality, 40 kilometers from Buenos Aires, the capital, which was identified thanks to the testimony of one of those affected.
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Immediately, a statement was issued for people who had used cocaine in the last 24 hours to go to health centers if they reported symptoms.
Similarly, a epidemiological alert for hospitals to treat patients for ‘poisoned’ drug use.
The pertinent operations were also carried out in the ‘Puerta 8’ sector, where six people were arrested and seizure of more than 7,000 doses of marijuana and cocaine similar to those found in the first victims.
Among those captured is ‘Alias El Paisa’, suspected of selling the drug and who has an arrest warrant since 2018.
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