WILTON MANORS, FLA. (WSVN) - Seven students visiting South Florida for spring break who overdosed on drugs at a Wilton Manors Airbnb have been identified as West Point Academy cadets.
Wilton Manors Police and Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue officials responded to a home along Northwest 29th Court and Ninth Avenue, around 5:20 p.m. Thursday.
The home is listed as an Airbnb.
“We saw paramedics pulling kids out of the house unconscious and just laying them on the grass,” said neighbor Dana Fumosa.
7SkyForce hovered above the home, as the men were transported to the hospital.
Four of the victims were taken to Broward Health Medical Center, and the other two victims were taken to Holy Cross Hospital.
On Friday morning, authorities said a seventh victim also had to be transported to the hospital.
Police remained on the scene to talk to a few people who remained at the home.
Some of the students are allegedly on the West Point college football team.
Investigators said the home was full of people, who were here on spring break, when at some point some began doing drugs and overdosing.
“Guys and girls over there, they seemed to be having a good time. They’ve been barbecuing, going in the pool,” said Fumosa.
“We are being told that four of those people had taken a substance that was believed to be cocaine laced with fentanyl when they went down into cardiac arrest,” said Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Stephen Gollan.
That’s when first responders said two friends of the four victims began to perform CPR, which then exposed them to the dangerous drug as well.
“Just trying to get them responsive, but they were unconscious most of them,” said Fumosa.
“We were able to get some of those individuals back, so their heart was beating again, with a Narcan. However, four of those individuals were still in respiratory arrest,” said Gollan.
“Rescue 46 has one male that did code. Got a pulse back. We believe that this was an incident with cocaine laced with fentanyl. Six patients still accessing,” said FLFR dispatch.
One of the spring breakers is still currently in the intensive care unit.
“He is currently intubated, which means he’s not breathing on his own,” said Gollan.
Officials are now concerned this bad batch of drugs may lead to other near death situations.
“It brings great concern there could be more OD’s over the next couple of days, just basing what we are seeing with the fentanyl we saw that was here this evening,” said Gollan.
The home was still taped off 12 hours after officials initially responded.
Community members remain concerned.
“I mean, these kids don’t know what they’re getting. They’re just here from out of state. They don’t know the area. They’re at an [air]bnb,” said Fumosa.
With spring breakers in South Florida and bad batches of drugs on the streets, city leaders with Wilton Manors released a statement reading in part, “We would like to warn spring breakers and members of the public about the dangers of using illegal drugs. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration reports of increasing numbers of counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl are surfacing with some users overdosing and dying after just taking one pill,” said City of Wilton Manors.
One of the students has since been released from the hospital.
Three students still remain in the hospital.
Leaders at the Academy told 7News they are aware of the incident and are conducting their own investigation.
The investigation is still ongoing.
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