Powerful, deadly drug that can be absorbed through skin found in Cambria County

CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WJAC) — Officials are warning the public about the presence of a powerful drug in Cambria County after a man overdosed in December.

Cambria County Coroner Jeff Lees held a press conference Friday morning after receiving the toxicology results from a death Dec. 27 in Jackson Township.

Lees says the results showed that the 43-year-old man died of a carfentanil overdose.

Lees described carfentanil as a synthetic opioid primarily used as a tranquilizer to sedate large animals, including elephants.

He says it's 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl.

“I feel as the coroner, an elected official, the need to make the public aware of this dangerous drug being here in Cambria County,” Lees said.

Carfentanil can be absorbed through the skin and can be dangerous if inhaled, so it poses a real danger to first responders and people who may come upon overdose situations.

"What we would like to ask, any caller who is faced with a situation like this, that they share any information describing what they see at the scene when making 911 calls," said EMA Coordinator Robbin Melnyk.

Melnyk stresses that the presence of the drug will not delay response time or mean help will not come, it just means responders will come prepared.

Lees says that the drug has been reported in surrounding counties over the past several years, and has now made its way to Cambria County.

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