MARTINS FERRY — In response to the rising number of drug overdoses in the area, the Belmont County Health Department is giving out free naloxone kits from 1-3 p.m. Wednesday at the Martins Ferry Veterans Memorial Recreation Center.

Naloxone, known by the brand-name Narcan, can be used on a person who is overdosing. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. It is an “opioid antagonist” that attaches to opioid receptors and reverses and blocks the effects of other opioids. This means naloxone can quickly restore normal breathing to a person if their breathing has slowed or stopped because of an opioid overdose.

On prior occasions, the health department has given naloxone kits to people who are completing drug treatment or leaving jail but remain at high risk of overdosing on opioids.

Belmont County Deputy Health Commissioner Robert Sproul said via text message that the kits will be given to anyone who may be able to respond to an overdose.

“Kits will be given to individuals after a brief one-on-one training session,” he texted.

He added that one or two kits will be given to each person seeking them, depending on their need. A total of 40 kits will be available. Sproul said the kits are easy to use with the training his staff will provide.

He said the state provides his office with the kits.

“We have to request them and hope the state funding continues,” he texted.

Sproul added there were three more drug overdoses reported in 2021 compared to 2020.

“Reported is the issue. They sometimes are not reported,” he said, adding that he could not say if any particular drug, such as fentanyl, is responsible. “Not sure because they list mixed drug descriptions and (West Virginia hospital facilities) redacts information.”

Sproul did not have the total numbers of drug overdose fatalities at hand.

John McFarland, Martins Ferry police chief and commander of the drug task force of the Belmont County Major Crimes Unit, said drug overdoses continue to plague Martins Ferry and the rest of the county and the available kits are welcome.

“With the drug problem … and there’s the fentanyl issue, I think everyone should have Narcan on them, because you never know when you might experience something. A loved one might come across something, they don’t know what it is, and may end up overdosing on something. It’s always good to have some Narcan around to use it and hopefully save them,” he said.

McFarland said there have been more frequent and dangerous instances of recent drug use, often involving fentanyl.

“More and more of our stuff that we are getting off of people that we suspect might be cocaine or just heroin turns out to be just straight fentanyl, which is extremely dangerous just to be around it if it gets into your pores, if you inhale it. We’re seeing more and more of them all the time,” McFarland said. “You never know. You can go to the grocery store and touch something that you might think is spilled powder. … You’ve got to think of dangerous situations you wouldn’t normally think about, but it’s out there and people have it.

“We’ve got uniforms and gear at the police department you’re supposed to put on when you come around what they believe is fentanyl just to protect the officers, so anyone that has the Narcan kits, hold onto them. You might be able to use them one day to save someone’s life,” he said.

“There are situations where we’ve had to use two or three Narcan kits to bring someone back to life. There’s been times when one Narcan didn’t work,” he said.

The recreation center is located at 401 S. Fourth St.

For more information, call the health department at 740-695-1202, ext. 140.