A BORDER drug counsellor has warned of the dangers of taking the drug BZP after an overdose in Albury early yesterday morning.
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A NSW Ambulance spokesman said a young woman was hospitalised after a drug overdose outside a premises in Dean Street soon after 3am.
“The patient was confused, had tremors, dilated pupils and was slow to react,” he said.
An Albury Base Hospital spokeswoman said the woman was discharged from hospital yesterday.
It is not known what drug caused the emergency but one witness said BZP pills are becoming more common in the twin cities.
Witness Kelvyn Everett, an Albury bartender, said the woman had been “convulsing and twitching” on the street, similar to the seizures caused by BZP.
He said there had been talk of BZP pills circulating on the Border recently after they had lost favour with Melbourne buyers.
He said they went under several names including Blue Kings, Blue Crowns and Blue Rolex.
“They’ve been going around for months now,” he said.
“People have done tests to confirm there is BZP in these pills.
“I’m not 100 per cent confident (last night’s incident) was BZP, I didn’t see them being taken, it could be something else, but it seems likes it’s the case from what I’ve researched.
“It was BZP or maybe GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyric acid).
“But not MDMA (ecstasy).”
Benzylpiperazine, which has street names including A2, Benny Bear, Benny, Frenzy and Nemesis, is illegal in Australia.
There have been no deaths reported after sole ingestion of the drug, although deaths have occurred from the combination of BZP and other drugs.
A study carried out at an Auckland emergency department found that BZP presentations made only a minor contribution to the overdose database with most cases not producing any significant toxicity.
Gateway Community Health manager of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, Deb Heery, said the overdose could have been caused by the amphetamine alternative.
She said if it was, it would be the first time she had heard of its use on the Border.
“BZP is more potent than the usual stimulants (in party pills),” Mrs Heery said.
“Because it’s such a potent stimulant, it can really play havoc with body systems.
“Obviously in this case, it’s hard to know. The evidence is anecdotal.”
She said it was another reminder of the dangers of taking so-called recreational drugs.
“They’re not regulated, you don’t know what’s in them,” she said.
