Cuyahoga County issues overdose alert after 40 deaths in five weeks
Photo: Fostering OkanaganCuyahoga County health officials issued a public health alert Friday after 40 people died of suspected drug overdoses over a five-week period, a surge driven by cocaine — often mixed with fentanyl that users may not know is in their drugs.
County Medical Examiner Dr. Thomas Gilson issued the alert Friday morning, citing a "sustained increase in suspected overdose deaths during October and November." Of the 40 deaths over the five-week period, 17 were Black residents, according to the medical examiner's office.
The alert marks a shift in the county's overdose crisis. Fentanyl-related deaths have been trending down in recent years, and the medical examiner's office says cocaine now drives all drug overdose deaths in Cuyahoga County. A majority of the preliminary drug screenings in the recent deaths came back positive for cocaine, and about half also included fentanyl.
"While things have improved, it is important to remember that we still see drug overdoses, especially involving cocaine and our Black population," Gilson warned.
The combination is especially dangerous because, unlike an opioid overdose, there is no medication that reverses a cocaine overdose. Health officials still urge people to keep the overdose-reversal drug naloxone, known as Narcan, on hand — because fentanyl is often mixed into the cocaine supply.
"Even though we're talking about cocaine related overdoses and deaths, administering the Narcan is still important because, again, you could have mixtures, you could have fentanyl within your drug supply," Senior Forensic Epidemiologist Manreet Bhullar told FOX 8.
The medical examiner's office urged people who use drugs to follow a personal harm-reduction plan: know the signs of a cocaine overdose — dizziness, confusion, shortness of breath, heavy sweating, a racing pulse, paranoia, chest pain, seizure and unresponsiveness — keep naloxone and fentanyl test strips ready, never use drugs alone, and sit upright, which can reduce the risk of slumping forward and blocking the airway. Anyone who witnesses an overdose should call 911; Ohio's Good Samaritan Law provides immunity for a minor drug possession or drug paraphernalia offense for both the person who overdosed and the person who called for help.
The office said addiction is treatable and urged people to seek help, pointing to Ohio treatment options at takecharge.ohio.gov. It said it will keep evaluating its data and information from community partners to determine whether more is behind the upward trend. The death figures are preliminary, based on death-scene investigations and early toxicology screens, and are subject to change as cases are finalized.
Sources: FOX 8 (WJW), "Warning issued after 40 people die from drug overdoses in Cuyahoga County" (Nov. 6, 2026); WKYC, "Cuyahoga County issues public health alert amid rise in suspected overdose deaths" (Nov. 6, 2026).
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