Nine non-fatal overdoses in a single week have prompted an urgent safety alert for the 45404 ZIP code covering Old North Dayton and the surrounding area. The warning, issued by the Safety Outreach Autonomy Respect Initiative, known as SOAR, lays out harm-reduction steps for anyone using drugs and instructions for bystanders who come across someone overdosing.
According to WDTN.com, SOAR said the nine overdoses were reported this week, a tally the outlet attributed directly to the initiative. The alert does not specify what is driving the spike, but it comes with pointed advice: start with a low amount and increase slowly, carry naloxone and know how to use it, and test drugs before using them whenever possible.
What SOAR Is Telling People Who Use Alone
For people using by themselves, the guidance is specific and urgent. SOAR advises against locking doors while using alone, so that help can get in quickly if something goes wrong, the station reported. Anyone using alone is also encouraged to call SafeSpot at 1-800-972-0590, a line that will only dispatch help if the caller actually needs it, according to the same report.
Harm reduction supplies and care are also available through a separate line, 380-245-2985, which people can call or text, per WDTN.com's reporting. Naloxone and fentanyl test strips can reportedly be ordered for discreet mailing, giving people a way to access overdose-reversal medication without an in-person pickup.
What To Do If You Witness An Overdose
The alert also spells out steps for anyone who witnesses an overdose: call 911 immediately, administer naloxone, position the person on their back, try to keep them awake and breathing, and stay with them until emergency crews arrive. Those steps mirror the kind of bystander guidance found across Montgomery County's broader overdose-response network.
That network includes Project Dawn Montgomery County, which offers free weekly naloxone overdose education and distribution every Wednesday at noon at 601 Edwin C. Moses Blvd., Door F, in Dayton, according to the Community Overdose Action Team's resource listing. Group naloxone training can also be scheduled by calling (937) 734-8333, the same listing notes. CarePoint, meanwhile, runs a used-syringe exchange program that provides clean syringes along with referrals to substance abuse treatment and other health and social services, per the Community Overdose Action Team's resource page. Anyone in crisis can call or text 988 or use the chat function at 988lifeline.org.
45404 Has a History of High Overdose Rates
The 45404 ZIP code has shown up in Montgomery County's overdose data before. From January through June 2020, it had the highest rate of overdose emergency-department visits of any ZIP code in the county, at 12.4 per 1,000 residents per year, according to the Community Overdose Action Team's 2020 data unit report. During that same stretch, 45404 also had the county's highest rate of overdose emergency-department visits. A separate look at overdose-death locations from January through April 2019 placed 45404 among a cluster of Central and East Dayton ZIP codes with the highest concentrations, alongside 45403, 45405, 45406, and 45410, per the same report. That historical data reflects conditions years ago and does not speak to what is happening in the neighborhood now.
Other Alerts Show a Pattern Across the Region
Old North Dayton isn't the only area SOAR has flagged recently. The initiative also issued an overdose risk alert for the 45426 area of Trotwood and surrounding neighborhoods, warning at the time that multiple large drug busts involving fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine could shake up the local supply. “This has the potential to affect the drug supply in the area. Please remember to go low and slow,” SOAR said in that alert, as reported by WDTN.com.
Elsewhere in Ohio, Franklin County Public Health has used a similar alert system after clusters of deaths. The agency reported six suspected overdose deaths within a 24-hour period, between May 13 and May 14, with cocaine and fentanyl identified as the most commonly suspected substances involved, according to Dayton 24/7 Now. Franklin County officials said five overdose fatalities within a single day typically prompts a community alert, giving a sense of the threshold public health agencies use before sounding the alarm.
