‘Tranq dope,’ a mixture of fentanyl and Xylazine, is causing overdoses in major cities like Philly
An emerging street drug dubbed “tranq dope” has sparked serious new health concerns as users have reportedly seen their own skin rot as a side effect.
Tranq is a mixture of fentanyl and Xylazine, an animal sedative commonly used for livestock like horses and cows. According to the DEA, Xylazine-positive overdose deaths drastically rose in every region from 2020 to 2021, with the south seeing a 1,127% increase year-over-year.
Philadelphia business owner Frank Rodriguez, a former drug addict, said the drug is eating users’ flesh.
“It’s finding the easiest way out, the path of least resistance, and that is coming straight out through the flesh and eating their skin,” Rodriguez said on “Fox & Friends First” Thursday.
Xylazine is reportedly being found in over 90% of Philadelphia’s drug supply.
Rodriguez explained to host Ashley Strohmier that bags of tranq are being sold in Philadelphia for as little as $4, but he said people can often get it for free.
He said the resulting effects bring to mind the image of zombies.
“When you’re in a group of three or four people, you can smell rotting flesh, and you know that at least one of them is suffering from these open sores. It almost looks like the walking dead, zombies,” he said.