Police issued a warning about an extremely strong synthetic opioid [Getty]
Police have issued an urgent warning about a stronger-than-usual batch of drugs after the death of a man in his 40s.
Emergency services were called to The Parade in Swindon town center in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The man’s death was the fourth suspected drug-related death in the area since May, Wiltshire Police said.
The force said the four individuals were believed to have taken what appeared to be heroin before suffering medical episodes.
At the beginning of May, police and health professionals in Swindon were alerted to a number of cases where people became very unwell after taking substances such as heroin and cocaine, requiring medical attention.
The deaths in the Swindon area come after two men died in Devon in April after a “bad batch” of heroin was distributed, and a warning was issued about a synthetic opioid potentially 500 times stronger than the heroine in bristol.
Service supervisor Conway Duncan said: “We are in close contact with our public health colleagues in relation to these circumstances and are keen to ensure that we protect people from harm wherever possible.
“Of course, we would never advocate anyone taking illegal substances, however, we understand that there are people with addictions and it is important that they are warned about the batch of drugs that seem to be circulating in Swindon.
“If you are a drug user in the Swindon area, we encourage users not to use alone and to carry naloxone, an opioid reversal drug, and to be aware of the potentially life-threatening consequences.”
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