The Northwest Virginia Regional Drug and Gang Task Force (NVRDGTF) and partnering law enforcement agencies are warning the public about a recent spike in fatal and non-fatal overdoses. The NVRDGTF has reported three fatal overdoses and three non-fatal overdoses this year, all since February. The deaths include one in the City of Winchester and two in Frederick County. The total number of reported overdoses in 2025 was three fatal overdoses and twenty-five non-fatal overdoses.
The recent increase in opioid related overdoses is likely due to fentanyl. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid which is fifty to one hundred times more potent than morphine. Two milligrams of fentanyl is potentially deadly for the average person. In recent months, law enforcement agencies across the United States have encountered narcotics laced with Synthetic Opioids such as Cocaine, Fentanyl, and Methamphetamine. These Synthetic Opioids, such as Cychlorphine, Xylazine, Dexmedetomidine, and Medetomidine, enhance the effects of the standard narcotics causing euphoria and respiratory failure often leading to death. Narcan (Naloxone), when used on a victim that has used a narcotic laced in these Synthetic Opioids, may work but due to the potency levels of the Synthetic Opioids used, it may take several dose units of Narcan to reverse the effects. Narcan (Naloxone) will NOT reverse the effects of Xylazine.
To increase community access to life-saving resources, the Northern Shenandoah Valley Substance Use Coalition is launching a series of pop-up events for free naloxone distribution across the region. We encourage residents to check our Northern Shenandoah Valley Substance Use Coalition Facebook page for the most up-to-date information, specific event dates, and location details.
The NVRDGTF is comprised of law enforcement personnel from Clarke, Frederick, Page, Shenandoah, and Warren County Sheriff’s Offices, Front Royal, Luray, Strasburg, and Winchester Police Departments and the Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Culpeper Field Office. The NVRDGTF is a HIDTA-funded initiative.
