The recent death of a high school student in Hollywood is being described as a wake-up call by police, parents, and leaders at local school districts.
15 year old Melanie Ramos recently died in a bathroom at Bernstein high school in Hollywood after taking what she believed was the prescription pain killer, Percocet. The pill was a counterfeit. Lab reports show it contained fentanyl. The Centers For Disease Control says fentanyl is fifty times more powerful than morphine.
Ramos’s death is among several local incidents that are being called poisonings by parents and police. They all involve teenagers taking fake pills containing fentanyl which are often bought on social media apps.
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The NBC4 I-Team found fentanyl related deaths in LA County have increased by more than 1700 percent from 2016 to 2021. Many of the deaths are young people.
Several local school districts are urgently planning educational programs for students, staff, and parents to help raise awareness about the dangers of counterfeit pills.
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The NBC4 I-team will continue to track this deadly trend.
