Latest news with #communityawareness
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
'Being smart on crime' leading to downtrend of overdoses
TUNKHANNOCK, WYOMING COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)— A local community is doing its part to combat the opioid epidemic by handing out a potentially life saving drug Narcan. It's a medication that counteracts the effects of opiate related overdoses. Wyoming County District Attorney Joe Peters, along with his community awareness group, set up shop in Tunkhannock in an effort to get this potential life-saver in as many hands as possible. For years, Wyoming County has been putting up a fight against the opioid epidemic through community events like this one. DAs share crime trends in Luzerne and Lackawanna counties The anonymous drive-through event hopes get Narcan in the hands of as many residents as possible, something District Attorney Joe Peters calls being 'smart on crime'. 'We just want to get Narcan out there. It's like a fire extinguisher. There's one in every building because, you're not trying to encourage a fire, you're trying to have something there to stop the fire,' said District Attorney Peters. Inside the kits, Narcan and instructions on how to administer it. Narcan is a nasal form of the drug naloxone. It binds with opioid receptors in the brain to reverse the effects of an overdose. The drug is not harmful to the user. 'That's the magic and the miracle of this drug,' expressed District Attorney Peters. While opioid related deaths are on the downtrend here in Wyoming County, District Attorney Joe Peters says distribution events like this one are crucial to continuing the fight against opioid abuse. One woman attending the event tells me she lost her brother to a fentanyl overdose only a few years ago. She says she wishes resources like these could have been available then. 'I think not only being aware that this, you know, is in our communities, this fentanyl, but being knowledgeable that there are things like Narcan that can make a difference,' said Mary Scarpa, Tunkhannock. She says now, she carries Narcan wherever she goes just in case someone needs it. 'If the situation ever occurs that, you know, I can help somebody out then I certainly would like to. It is really difficult to lose somebody to an overdose and so I don't wish that upon anybody,' expressed Scarpa. Peters says he hopes to have more Narcan distribution events throughout Wyoming County in the future. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CTV News
23-05-2025
- CTV News
This new app could help find a missing child across the province
Police out of Orillia announced a new system on Friday to help increase the chances of finding missing children around the province. This effort coincides with Missing Children's Month and International Missing Children's Day. OPP announced their partnership with the Missing Children Society of Canada (MCSC) adopting a new progressive web application called MCSC's 'rescu'. An application that plans to enhance community awareness. MCSC 'rescu' allows the public to subscribe to child search alerts for urgent missing children cases in their area. It will provide interactive maps of missing youths right across Canada. If a child goes missing within OPP jurisdiction, the OPP says they will collaborate with MCSC to publish details on 'rescu' and, if appropriate criteria is met, issue child search alerts. These alerts will only be sent for the most urgent cases, including: Threats of self-harm or suicide Drug/alcohol addiction posing safety risks Neurocognitive disorders Indigenous or 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals Risk of serious bodily harm or death 'Your information could mean resolution for a family who has experienced the trauma of having a child or loved one go missing,' shared OPP. Police encourage the public to register and submit any tips that could help. Every tip is followed up and might be just the piece of information needed to find a child. In emergencies, always call 9-1-1. For non-urgent OPP-related matters, police ask you to call 1-888-310-1122.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
Linden neighborhood pushes anti-violence message
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Now that the warmer months are here, community groups are out in force working to put an end to gun violence. Historically, more violent crimes in central Ohio take place during the warmer months, with the community groups working to keep Columbus' homicides for the year under triple digits. From now until October, community advocates and groups will be walking around Linden, raising awareness and handing out various flyers filled with resources. Organizers said the goal of these walks is to educate children and adults and to see a decrease in gun violence. Teen on the mend after tree falls into house during storm 'Over the past five or six years, the murder rate has been very high, and we want to make sure that we want to do our part in decreasing gun violence,' Linden Community Stop the Violence founder Derrick Russell said. It's been a decade since Columbus has seen fewer than 100 homicides per year. According to newly released homicide numbers from the Columbus Division of Police, there have been fewer homicides so far this year than there have been in several years; however, May has been the deadliest month of the year so far. 'It's a more bigger problem than just young people carrying guns,' We Are Linden founder Ralph Carter said. 'A lot of it is misplaced anger and a lot of hidden trauma that these young people are dealing with and for them, the easiest outlet is retaliation or just result in negative acts.' With school coming to an end and the weather getting warmer, community leaders like Russell and Carter said now is the time to get outside, connect with youth, and offer resources. On Monday, a group got together for their annual End Gun Violence Community Walk. 'We want the gun violence to continue to decrease, and we want to see a better increase in education for our youth,' Russell said. 'We want them to come out. We want them to start to be more productive citizens.' Columbus approves $2.5 million for new fire engine For Jaylin Garel, being involved with these events is important. During the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, he and his brother struggled mentally. He's now found purpose in helping others. 'It's to show them that they have a village behind them, like, a lot of youth have a missing father figure or just a missing figure in the household and it's to show them that the mom or whoever that guardian is in the house that your village can back you,' Garel said. The next walks are set to take place June 16 and 23 at North Columbus Preparatory Academy; July 14 and 21 at Dollar Plus on Cleveland Avenue; Aug. 18 and 25 is at Linden Recreation Center; on Sept. 15 and 22, groups will gather at True Love Ministries; and the last two events will be Oct. 20 and 27 at the Northern Lights Shopping Center. All walks will take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
