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Five Psychiatric Patients Hospitalized After Smoking Fake Weed
By
Emma Whitford
Published Jul 24, 2015
Modified Jul 24, 2015
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By
Emma Whitford
Published Jul 24, 2015
Modified Jul 24, 2015
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Five men were hospitalized this morning after allegedly smoking fake weed, also known as K2, at a psychiatric hospital on Ward's Island. There are currently no reported casualties.
The FDNY responded to Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center at 600 East 125th Street at 8:44 a.m. where, according to an NYPD spokesman, five men were "unconscious and throwing up." The Post reports that three of the men were found unconscious, while two others were vomiting. Three of the men were transported to Harlem Hospital, the others to Metropolitan Hospital Center. All five are expected to survive.
It is not yet clear how the five inmates obtained the K2 in the first place, and the investigation is ongoing.
Earlier this month, following a headline-worthy uptick in fake-weed hospitalizations—over 1,900 in New York between April and June!—Governor Cuomo expanded his 2012 regulations banning the substance, adding two new classes of compounds to the banned list. While it's highly unusual to end up in the ER for smoking the real thing, fake weed is often laced with a cocktail of dangerous chemicals and has been known to cause seizures and hallucinations. Because the chemicals are always changing, there is no catch-all antidote.
If none of this information is enough of a deterrent for you, refer to our very own test trial of the synthetic stuff from 2012.
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Emma Whitford
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