South Florida Flakka is cheap and dangerous and its terror on the streets of Florida shows no sign of abating. In fact, it is on the rise. Flakka is the name of a new synthetic street drug, which has taken the United States in its grip with South Florida being the worst hit. The name Flakka seems to be derived from a Spanish word “la flaca” which denotes thin and beautiful women who charm. Well! Charm or not, Flakka has scared the hell out of every body, even the authorities.
In the video feed ‘We spent 24 hours living through Florida’s Flakka crisis’ the journalist is heard saying that the ordeal was terrifying. The rescue team had arrested a naked man running in the streets. In another video, a man is seen trying to break the glass doors of the Another man named ‘Shanard Neely ‘impaled himself on a fence and got seriously injured. The EMT agrees on the video that they do not know how the victim may behave. They also exhibit tremendous physical power and that is why a lot of manpower is required to deal with
Dr. Nabil. El. Sanadi, President and CEO of North Broward District hospital says that this is perhaps the worst drug he has seen and the fastest to catch on. He also says that the Flakka victim feels that they are being chased, shot at, or that the devil is behind them. He agrees that their EM department sees at least 100 cases per month. Jim Hall the Fort Lauderdale’s drug epidemiologist has confirmed 29 deaths since last September. The IOP’s in Broward are already struggling with painkillers and prescription drug addiction. Flakka just adds fuel to the roaring fire.
Health risks associated with Flakka
Flakka is made from a compound called α- PVP, which is an amphetamine-like chemical. It is similar to bath salt and acts as a euphoric stimulant. Many of the users confuse the powdered Flakka with cocaine or heroin and snort a good amount of the stuff. That is what is fatal. Flakka is highly potent. More potent than cocaine and in very small doses. It is more addictive than meth.
The typical dose of Flakka to act as a stimulant is 0.1 grams. Even a slight overdose creates terrifying side effects like:
- Heart symptoms like palpitations, fast and irregular heartbeats, cardiac arrest
- Delusions, hallucinations
- Paranoia, anxiety and delirium
- Violent and aggressive behavior
- Muscle breakdown (rhabdomyolysis) which can cause severe dehydration and kidney failure
- Brain damage
- Many of the psychological and brain damage is permanent.
Availability and cost of Flakka in South Florida
This is perhaps the biggest problem in tackling the Flakka epidemic. It is easily available in most of the local and online stores because it is legal. When bath salts were banned in the U.S., the labs in China twisted and tweaked them a little. The result was a more potent and deadly synthetic drug, Flakka. Moreover, it is legal. It can be easily purchased from online stores at a cost of $3-$5 a dose. Its low cost is alarming. Because of the low cost, its use is on the rise in low-income strata, teens, school kids, and even in the homeless.
