Opioid overdoses becoming prevalent in Orion and surrounding areas

By Georgia Thelen
Review Writer
The North Oakland Community Coalition (NOCC) hosted “Heroes on the Front Line”, a panel discussion regarding the opioid epidemic in Oakland County on Nov. 28.
Opioid and heroin addictions have more than doubled in Orion Township in the last three to five years, according to Lt. Dan Toth of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department.
Last week, the DEA released a new study revealing that there are 78 deaths per day from opiate overdoses in the United States. That total is more than the daily gun and auto deaths combined in the Unites States.
“If we had 11 deaths in Orion Township from fires in 11 months or drunk driving accidents… That would really make the news… What I really want to get across here tonight from my stand point is that there’s still a stigma about substance abuse in America and this community,” said Lt. Toth.
All panel members agreed that there is a stigma surrounding substance abuse in the area. People are embarrassed to call the police, fire department or to ask for help from anyone in general. People don’t want their neighbors to see, for people to talk, or for anyone to realize that there is a problem going on in their home.
Both Lt. Toth and Chief Jerry Narsh of the Lake Orion Police Department repeatedly said that they wish more people would simply call them for help. They are not looking to make arrests; they’re hoping to stop an issue before it becomes a life or death situation. Toth and Narsh hear from many families that had seen warning signs and later wished they had spoken out and gotten to the bottom of their loved ones problem before they lost them.
“Here’s a snapshot for you. In the Village of Lake Orion in the last month, we’ve had four heroin overdoses… One was fatal and three were callbacks with the Narcan, which is a blessing,” said Narsh.
Narcan has been introduced in the last three years as a tool for officers and firemen to revive opiate users who have overdosed. It is a quick fix to stimulate a users brain and reverse their “high”, but it unfortunately does not cure an addiction.
Orion Township Fire Dept. Lt. Chris Hagan recalled his first years on the force. He remembers the eye-opening experience of being on the force at the young age of 19 and responding to overdose calls that involved his previous high school classmates.
DEA Agent Calvin Higgins is a Lake Orion resident and says that his talk is always directed at the parents. Kids are now smarter than the parents in a sense, so parents need to try harder. He is a firm believer in “snooping” through your children’s things if they are living under your roof.
“Parents, you’ve got to get more involved, you’ve got to love them as if they are your child, not your friend,” said Higgins.
ACHC Oakland County FAN Coordinator, Tracy Chirikas shared warning signs of substance use includes a change in friends, and she also recommendeds that parents check their child’s cell phone records and meets their friends’ parents. Chirikas also informed the audience that as parents, they have the right to request non-narcotic drugs for pain or after a surgery for their children.
There are prescription drug drop-offs for unneeded drugs at the Lake Orion Village Police Department and also the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department Substation.
The NOCC’s next meeting is Dec. 8 at 6:30 p.m. where they will be discussing “The Masks We Wear.” The meeting is at Woodside Bible Church inside of Canterbury Village, located at 2500 Joslyn Rd.