A second man has died after a bad batch of unusually strong heroin has circulated on the streets of North Devon.
Police have announced a major incident in the area after a batch of heroin reportedly made people ‘very ill’.
Following incidents in a village as well as two towns, ten individuals were admitted to hospital with one man sadly dying, according to Devon and Cornwall police.
Two of the ten people hospitalised still require medical treatment, the police force reports.
It is thought that the drug poses ‘no threat to the wide community’ and was contained, senior officials have said.
Two men and two women have since been released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of being in the supply of a controlled substance.
A second man has died after a bad batch of unusually strong heroin has circulated on the streets of North Devon
Emergency services had been contacted in regards to three incidents that had occurred in three separate locations – Bideford, Barnstaple and Westward Hol.
This comes shortly after police declared a major incident after the ‘bad batch’ of heroin killed one man on Friday.
At around 5pm that day Devon and Cornwall police became aware of what is believed to be an ‘unusually strong batch of heroin’ circulating in the area.
In the initial urgent notice published on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Devon and Cornwall police alerted the public about the bad batch circulating the area.
They said: ‘We have been dealing with a public health incident with our partners. 9 casualties across 3 locations in North Devon area needed emergency medical treatment.’
They asked people to check on any known drug users and urged them to ‘not take any controlled substances.’
Two men and two women have since been released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of being in the supply of a controlled substance, according to Devon and Cornwall police (file image)
Police were working with the South Western Ambulance service to tackle the major incident that was stood down Saturday morning.
Devon and Cornwall Police released a statement which read: ‘As soon as we were made aware of the issue this substance was likely to cause on Friday evening, we did everything possible with partners to reach out to the drug-using community to warn them of potential danger they were facing.
‘We continue to work with health partners to warn those who may be substance users to exercise extreme caution. However, we would reassure the community we believe this is now contained.
‘If anyone fears they are in danger or are in the company of someone suffering a medical episode, we would ask they contact 999 to seek appropriate medical help.’
This is breaking. Updates to follow.
