Two overdoses, one deadly near Cass City Wednesday night

Emily Dennis, 26, of Caro, died of a probable overdose late Wednesday night, Tuscola County Undersheriff Robert Baxter said.

Shortly after midnight on April 20, deputies were called to a residence on the 5000 block of Dodge Rd in Elmwood Twp near Cass City and upon arrival found that Dennis was deceased.

Based on evidence collected by deputies at the scene, heroin is suspected to be the cause of the overdose.

At this time, the drug does not appear to be fentanyl or carfentanil laced, Baxter said, however blood test results will be needed before law enforcement can say for certain whether synthetic opioids are involved.

Sellers of illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine sometimes cut those drugs with fentanyl or carfentanil, which are less expensive and many times stronger than the drugs they are being cut with, causing users to overdose without knowing it.??

The Centers for Disease Control says that deaths attributable to synthetic opioids like carfentanil, and its relatively weaker sibling fentanyl, doubled in the Midwest from 2014-2015.??

In Michigan during that time, there were nearly 2,000 opioid deaths overall, a nearly 13 percent increase over the previous year.??

Naloxone, a drug branded as Narcan can be useful in blocking opioid overdoses.

Tuscola County Behavioral Health System (TCBHS) makes Narcan kits available to the public.

"We are giving away the Narcan kits for free," said TCBHS's Director of Marketing and Training Susan Holder. "We also provide quick training and it's simple to use," she added.

Preliminary investigation by the Sheriff's Office has found that an ambulance was called to the residence earlier in the day for another possible overdose.

The house belongs to the mother of Dennis's 31-year-old boyfriend.

It is also the boyfriend's residence.

Baxter said that "Gagetown Fire Department and Fairgrove MMR were dispatched to the residence" when Dennis was found unconscious and not breathing at around midnight.

CPR was attempted, but was unsuccessful.

Holder stressed that although having and using a Narcan kit can save a life, "it doesn't replace medical assistance. 911 still needs to be called."

Detectives are being assisted in their investigation by the Thumb Narcotics Unit.

More evidence is being collected and the investigation is ongoing.

An autopsy was scheduled for Friday.

Caroline Goetze is a reporter for The Advertiser and can be reached at caroline@tcadvertiser.com