TAMPA, Fla. — A 15-year-old student at Sickles High School in Hillsborough County was arrested after smoking a vape with liquid THC and sharing it with two other female students, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
The girls experienced severe reactions and one was hospitalized, deputies said.
Deputies said they feared it wasn't just THC in the vape pen.
"You don't know what your potency is, what your mix is, or what you're using in the first place," Danny Alvarez with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. "In the case last night, the paramedics that arrived were so nervous this was laced with Fentanyl that they actually gave the victim a dose of Narcan. You have a 14-year-old girl who is exhibiting some strange symptoms says she's only vaped marijuana, and in reality, they think it may be laced with Fentanyl."
The Center for Disease Control found that from November 2017 to 2018, vaping by high school students had increased 78 percent. A common behavior exhibited by 3.6 million students yielding scary results in some cases.
"People think it's an alternative form of drug usage that is safe. There is a misconception that because the vape pens and the vaping is commonplace and out on the street, that's a way they can get their drug without getting harmed. The reality is that couldn't be anything further from the truth," Alvarez said.
We reached out to Sickles High School about the incident and were sent the following response:
"We know vaping has become a problem among some teens in our community. We have programs in place in our schools to talk to students about a number of health topics including substance use and abuse. Making smart and healthy decisions is a core part of our teaching, particularly in middle and high school. We encourage our parents to talk to their children about the dangers of putting unknown substances in their bodies." -Hillsborough County Public Schools
The trend of smoking THC is growing across the county, and particularly in Hillsborough County.
"For the first time in Hillsborough County the use of marijuana, THC, has surpassed the use of alcohol," Lynne Knowles, the Chapter President of Narcotics Overdose Prevention and Education said. The group works with local schools to promote drug education and outreach.
From the nearly 1,000 Hillsborough students surveyed, 17 percent of those students reported alcohol use in the past 30 days and 19 percent of those students reported marijuana use, according to the annual Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey, conducted by the Florida Department of Children and Families,
"It's alarming because I mean that has not surpassed it in all these years, and now it is? We have to ask ourselves why? Is it the vaping? Is it the oil? What is it?" Knowles asked.
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