The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures shows Australian drug deaths have been on the increase with a new record high since the late 90s.
But unlike the 90s, the #1 killer drug is no longer heroin. It’s also not ice but something seemingly far more benign.
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It appears that Drug-Safe Communities was a few days too early in running our article about the creative ways that drug smugglers attempt to get their illicit goods into the country. Today, the big news is that our border protection authorities intercepted drugs concealed inside…highlighter pens. That’s right! Highlighter pens. Twenty one thousand of them to be exact.
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The recent announcements by authorities of drug busts involving prefabricated steel and honey jars shows just how determined drug smugglers are to bring illicit drugs into Australia.
Two Iranian nationals were arrested in relation to bringing 10 kilograms of methamphetine hidden inside honey jars on an international flight.
Meanwhile, several Australians have been detained in Serbia in relation to the discovery of 1.28 tonnes of cocaine in a Chinese freighter that had sailed from China to Sydney. The drug was concealed inside prefabricated steel and had a street value of more than $500 million.
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Imagine a drug 50 times more powerful than heroin and 80 times stronger than morphine. A drug so powerful that the smallest amount, just a few milligrams, is enough to kill you. Overseas it has already earned itself the street name, ‘Drop Dead’.
The drug is Fentanyl, a ‘Schedule 8’ synthetic opioid, and the Founder of Drug-Safe Communities, Michael White, is warning that it has the potential to sweep across Australia much like the methamphetamine ‘Ice’ has in recent years. It could become The Next Wave.
“Fentanyl is starting to make its presence felt in Australia – especially in the regional areas. Eight hundred people die each year from prescription drug overdoses and the toll is highest in the bush.”
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Methodone is an opioid and used as a prescription drug to curb withdrawal symptoms for heroin addicts. It is actually a synthetic version of heroin which mimics the effects that a heroin user experiences.
What needs to be said at the outset is that methodone is a powerful drug. When a heroin user stops taking heroin and joins a legal methodone program they are not going ‘clean’. They are not going ‘cold turkey’. They have simply replaced one destructive substance for another.
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A study by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre has uncovered alarming news: the number of deaths relating to methamphetamines has doubled in the past seven years.
More Drugs In The Bush
The other alarming statistic is that illicit drug use in regional areas of Australia has reached an all time high.
Of all of the deaths caused by Methamphetamines since 2009, almost half of them (41 percent) occurred outside the big cities.
A 42 year old truckie who faced Mackay Supreme Court for drug possession revealed that he was carrying enough Ice in his truck to drive 42 trips under its influence.
He said there was constant pressure from his employers to cover long distances and he was driving up to 140 hours per week, and needed the Ice to stay awake.
Police pulled the B-double over after another truck driver reported he had seen it swerve across the road, and they found $5000 of methamphetamines in bags in the cabin.
Since being apprehended the driver has stopped taking the drug, he has changed from long haul to short distance local routes and changed industries to drive a front end loader.
The Royal Australian Navy has been very busy over the past three years as a member of the 31-nation Combined Maritime Forces group patrolling the oceans west and north of Australia.
HMAS Arunta recently arrived home after a long time at sea during which time its crew discovered and seized 570 kilograms of heroin and 800 kilograms of hashish.
The street value of these discoveries is more than $200,000,000.
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Three million hits of the drug Ice have been taken off our streets following a successful raid by Border Force officials.
They discovered 370 kilograms of ephedrine secreted in sea cargo and the ‘find’ has led to two arrests so far.
A former manager of premiership winning AFL players will go on trial after allegedly being caught with $1 million worth of Ice during a routine traffic stop.
Gold Coast police have discovered nearly $750,000 worth of drugs and a shotgun after raiding homes of ex-bikie gang members. The drugs included methamphetamines, MDMA, cannabis and prescription drugs.
Police have found $35,000 in cash and drugs in a four wheel drive vehicle after it left the Castlereagh Highway and flipped several times. The occupants escaped with minor injuries.
A fight between two friends over heroin has need with one of them fighting for his life in hospital with stab wounds to the abdomen.
A Crime And Corruption Commission audit of hospitals has found 66 per cent of thefts related to missing drugs.
The State Opposition in Victoria is calling Premier Andrews’ Ice Action Plan a $184 million dud.
I turned up for work and wondered where my business partner was. Several hours later I discovered why he didn’t appear. He had been found dead in an alley way at Kings Cross with a needle still in his arm. He had died of a heroin overdose.
I had no idea that he had a drug addiction. We had been working together for 15 years. How was it that he had managed to keep it a secret from me?
The shock of this tragic discovery worsened when I found out he had been fiddling the books in order to pay for his habit. He had taken more than $300,000 from the company account.
No matter how well you think you know someone…you don’t.
The story on the left is not just any story. It is the story of Drug-Safe’s founder Michael White. The events destroyed his then-business. It was the reason he created Drug-Safe Australia and made it his mission to help companies like yours avoid similar tragedies.
One person, one incident could ruin your business forever. Not to mention the lives impacted of employees, families and depending on the incident even random members of the public.
It is our mission to help you avoid such tragic incidents from impacting or destroying your company. Our professional staff members will work with you to determine the best approach in protecting your employees.
From drug testing policy development, staff drug safety education, drug and alcohol testing and drug-safe workplace certification – our services are
Call us today for a confidential conversation and discover how we can help you!
Whether you are in a capital city or in the remote parts of Australia. With our fleet of mobile drug testing units and locations across Australia, we can cover most of the continent.
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