MILWAUKEE – Seventeen Milwaukee County fatal drug overdoses in 72 hours were linked to a bad batch of opioids, according to county health leaders who are working to raise awareness of harm reduction strategies in the wake of these deaths.
Thirteen men and four women, with an average age of 50, died from drug overdoses within a 72-hour period April 1-4 in Milwaukee County. The deaths mostly occurred in Milwaukee but also in West Allis and South Milwaukee.
Their families are struggling to make sense of the loss.
“These were sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers,” said Dr. Ben Weston.
John Edge, 37, was one of them. 
“He would do a lot for anybody,” said Debra Edge, John’s mom. “It’s a lot of disbelief and pain. I know he suffered from pain. He had pancreatitis.”
Edge said her son was found dead in a Milwaukee apartment April 2.
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“It’s just really heartbreaking and to know that there was nothing that you could have really done…” said Edge.
Health officials believe this so-called bad batch of opioids is laced with a new drug called xylazine, an animal sedative, or a fatal dose of fentanyl.
“Certainly when you see a spike like the 17 cases in 72 hours, something has changed in the community, whether it’s the frequency of use, the type of substance,” said Dr. Weston.
On Tuesday, April 11, instead of a weekly health check-in online, Dr. Weston focused on opioid harm reduction.
“The scope and the impact is really immense,” said Dr. Weston.
It’s something Egde said needs to be addressed.
“I don’t have any other certain questions other than why,” said Edge. “I know we can’t prevent everything in the world, but this was a lot of people in a short amount of time.”
Dr. Weston said to combat the crisis, they are working to improve access to health care and enhance mental health support.
“All these methods are because opioid users are worth saving,” said Dr. Weston.
Edge said she can’t bring her son back but hopes these efforts can avoid another tragedy.
Dr. Weston said Tuesday 26 community agencies have applied for harm reduction vending machines containing things like NARCAN and fentanyl test strips. The first harm reduction vending machine in Milwaukee County was unveiled March 13 at the Marcia Coggs Human Services Center, part of Milwaukee County’s $11M in opioid harm reduction projects.
On March 29, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved selling NARCAN/naloxone over the counter.
Another resource is the Milwaukee Overdose Response Initiative (MORI), which started in 2019. Peer support specialists knock on the doors of people who overdosed and survived, offering ways to a new life within about two days from when they came close to death.

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