On July 17, Gordon County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a private residence on Moore’s Ferry Road in response to a report of a medical emergency. The deputy arrived 8 minutes later to find an unresponsive 33 year old male laying on the front porch. The deputy swiftly administered NARCAN (Naloxone) to the man.
The man initially failed to respond / regain consciousness so the deputy began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. A second deputy arrived and administered a second dose of NARCAN, but the man still wasn’t breathing and his skin began to turn blue. The deputies continued performing CPR and administered a third dose of NARCAN whereupon the man began to breathe again. Fire rescue and emergency medical services personnel arrived within minutes and transported the male subject to a local hospital. He was awake and alert upon arrival.
NARCAN is is a drug administered as a counter-active agent to opioid overdoses. In 2016 the Sheriff’s Office was selected to participate in a statewide pilot program, “Project DAN” wherein deputies and jail staff would be trained in the use of Naloxone and issued with NARCAN. Sheriff’s Office personnel have routinely been issued with NARCAN since then. Additionally, sworn and jail staff receive training in CPR annually. Deputies are routinely dispatched to emergency medical calls and are often first on scene.
Deputy sheriffs have administered NARCAN in at least 15 other overdose incidents since 2016 wherein at least 15 other people were resuscitated and their lives saved by the swift action of thoroughly trained officers equipped with the proper tools to preserve life.
