Philadelphia appears to be the next large city to be affected by the use of a commonly prescribed veterinary tranquilizer. Xylazine is better known by its street name “tranq,” and its effects have been witnessed through a number of prominent social media videos.
Dramatic footage shows people in an apparent zombie-like state along the city’s streets, either standing in place or lying on sidewalks and porches.
Dramatic footage shows people in an apparent zombie-like state along the city’s streets, either standing in place or lying on sidewalks and porches. The combination of the likely addicts and dirty street scenes shows a sharp contrast of the effects of drug abuse.
In particular, the wave of tranq abuse appears to be more heavily affecting large cities administered by the Democratic Party. The effects of tranq intoxications have been so strong that businesses set up sprinkler systems to deter addicts from staying in their location.
Xylazine is intended for use as a veterinary medicine, often used on horses. Its potency has also led to its widespread use as a recreational drug.
Prolonged use of the drug can result in severe side effects, including rotting flesh. The drug is often mixed with a number of other elements that could make such infections worse. In fact, tranq is often mixed with other drugs, with Philadelphia reporting that it was in about 90% of drug samples in 2021.
Things are not okay in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/zdJW0Eu97H
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) September 10, 2023
“Xylazine has hit Philadelphia particularly hard, causing increased overdose deaths as well as severe wounds that can lead to sepsis and amputation,” the Philadelphia Department of Health and Board of Health said earlier this year.
The United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) warned about the mixture of tranq with the synthetic opioid fentanyl. Fentanyl abuse has also grown dramatically in recent years and is responsible for a sharp increase in overdose deaths.
“Xylazine is making the deadliest drug threat our country has ever faced, fentanyl, even deadlier,” the agency said.
It added that the agency had seized “xylazine and fentanyl mixtures in 48 of 50 states.”
