Fort Lauderdale, United States---As drugs go, it's dirt cheap, potent and deadly. And it creates surreal, pitiful scenes like this: a man running down the street buck naked, fleeing from imaginary dogs.
This addictive synthetic drug known on the streets as 'flakka,' or gravel, has killed dozens of people in Florida, and its popularity is spreading fast.
Also known as "5$ insanity" in allusion to the price of a dose -- the formal chemical name is Alpha-PVP -- the stuff is manufactured in China and is similar chemically to bath salts.
Particularly hard hit is Broward County, a touristy area of south Florida, just north of Miami.
"Broward is much like ground zero for flakka or Alpha-PVP," said Heather Clark of United Way, a charity that is trying to raise awareness of the dangers of the drug .
People generally smoke it, but it can also be injected intravenously or "vaped" -- inhaled in vapor form.
"It truly is a very dangerous drug. It's not recreational. It's not something that you can take without adverse side effects," Clark told AFP.
No one knows for certain, how flakka got its name. But the Spanish word 'flaca' is slang for girlfriend or beautiful girl.
- Deadly downmarket high -
The drug can be purchased over the Internet for 1,500 dollars a kilo (680 dollars a pound). By way of comparison a kilo of cocaine can cost 15 times that or more.
It is sent by mail from China in small quantities, which dealers then distribute, according to a report issued this month by state authorities on drug abuse in Broward County.
Chinese companies also advertise the drug openly on the Internet and will mail it directly to your home.
"This is a highly poisonous substance that may have been intentionally designed for longer lasting effects, and specifically to be more addictive, because that's good for sales," said James Hall, an epidemiologist at Nova Southeastern University who has studied the drug market in Florida for years.
Since the drug first appeared on the streets of the county in September, 34 people who took it have died. The drug has existed since the 1960s but its current incarnation, as Hall said, has been turbopowered to make addicts and money fast.
Hospital emergency rooms deal with at least 20 cases a day, said Hall, who is working with county authorities to compile data.
AFP
