Synthetic drug flakka (Google images)
PHILIPSBURG–Concerns have been increasing by police and concerned residents about a growing new drug causing major headlines around the world called flakka. Although no cases of such a drug had been reported to be on the Dutch side of the island, it is necessary to inform the public that flakka has the potential to be much more dangerous than cocaine. Flakka gets its name from Spanish slang for a beautiful woman: la flaca. A small amount of this drug, which can be smoked, injected or snorted, can lead to a range of extreme symptoms: excited delirium, as experts call it, marked by violent behaviour; spikes in body temperature (105 degrees and higher); and paranoia.
Probably what has brought flakka the most attention is that it gives users what feels like the strength and fury of the Incredible Hulk. The man-made drug causes a euphoric high similar to cocaine.
Like “bath salts,” a group of related synthetic drugs that were banned in 2012, flakka contains a chemical that is a close cousin to the stimulant MDPV, a key ingredient in “bath salts.” These chemicals bind and thwart molecules on the surface of neurons that normally keep in check the levels of the mood-regulating neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin. The result is to “flood the brain” with these chemicals.
One young man who lives on the French side of the island was reportedly high on flakka recently and ran nude through the streets of Marigot, close to the waterfront.
Information reaching The Daily Herald suggests that he was violently running with a knife in his hand and swam after a boat trying to chase it. French-side authorities have not confirmed these reports.
A man in South Florida who broke down the hurricane-proof doors of a police department admitted to being on flakka. A girl in Melbourne, Florida, ran through the street screaming that she was Satan while on a flakka trip. Authorities in the state are warning people about the dangers of the drug.
Police spokesman Chief Inspector Ricardo Henson urges all parents to have a serious talk with their children about this dangerous drug and its life-threatening consequences.
“There have not been any reports of any incidents in connection with the use of this drug. However, just like any other drug, it could make its way to our doorsteps,” Henson said in an invited comment to this newspaper on Monday.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/67556-police-warn-public-about-dangerous-drug-flakka
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