Nine people died of overdoses in Cecil County during the month of January.
While a medical examiner hasn’t confirmed each cause of death, heroin was present at every scene, officials said.
So far this year, the Cecil County Sheriff’s Office responded to 59 non-fatal overdoses.
“Each one of these was preventable,” officials said on Facebook.
Last year, 22 heroin overdose deaths were reported in Cecil County from January to September 2016.
It's a dark cloud that's hanging over Elkton.
"What we may be seeing here in Cecil County is something far worse than we have ever seen before," Stephanie Garrity, the health officer for the county, said.
She says the number of heroin-related deaths in the county is growing.
"One death is upsetting and we want to make sure that that never happens again, but we're dealing with a discouragement and we really have to focus on that," she said.
While numbers haven't been confirmed by the chief medical examiner, investigators say the number of fatal overdoses where heroin has been present is up to ten for the year.
"The anecdotal that we get from our local law enforcement and our local emergency responders say that they probably are," Garrity said.
Major George Stanko says the heroin his investigators find at scenes are laced with Fentanyl -- an opioid that's used to treat severe pain.
"There's a lot of other substances being put into the heroin these days. It's a nationwide problem much more deadly."
Deputies are not only trying to find help for addicts, but also the source of the heroin.
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