Cleveland official issues public health warning after 7 fatal drug overdoses in 1 day

On Saturday, seven people in Cuyahoga County Ohio died of drug overdoses. According to CNN, the deaths spurred the county's medical examiner to issue a public health warning.

While the drugs that caused the overdoses are not yet known, both the county and the state at-large have experienced a record number of overdoses linked to three opioids: heroin, carfentanil and fentanyl.

In August, drug enforcement officers suggested heroin laced with fentanyl, the drug that killed Prince, or possibly carfentanil, an elephant tranquilizer 10,000 times more powerful than morphine, was responsible for more than 75 overdose deaths in Ohio and Indiana.

"This cluster of deaths is deeply concerning," said medical examiner Thomas Gilson in a statement relayed by CNN. "Although there is no clear link between the individuals, this number clearly raises the possibility of a very deadly drug in the community."

According to CNN, Cuyahoga County is projected to have more than 500 fatalities linked to opioid overdoses by the end of 2016.

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