Carfentanil poses risk to Maryland's first responders (ABC 2 News)

BALTIMORE, Md. - A synthetic opiate is responsible for four recent deaths in Maryland. Heroin and fentanyl killed hundreds in the last year but carfentanil is stronger than both and threatens the lives of its users as well as the people who come to their aid.

In the war on heroin, medics are on the front lines. They receive a daily barrage of calls for drug overdoses.

“I bet at this station they get about 10 a day for OD's,” said Rick Hoffman, president of IAFF Local 734 Baltimore firefighters.

Hoffman represents the first responders in the City with the most heroin-related deaths in the state. Three-hundred forty two people lost their lives in the first nine months of 2016.

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“We know that fentanyl is being trafficked from other countries and being mixed in with heroin and other drugs without the person using the drugs knowing it, so it's possible that carfentanil can also follow a similar pattern and cause many more deaths,” said Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen.

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