BAD BATCH BLITZ: Mass Overdose Sickens 25 in West Baltimore

REPORT: Emergency crews responded to a level one mass casualty incident involving as many as 25 people experiencing overdose symptoms in Penn-North. Baltimore City fire and police officials said the city received an overdose call around 9:25 a.m. Thursday and that paramedics responded to the area of Pennsylvania and North avenues.

In Baltimore, Maryland a suspected tainted street supply triggered a level-one mass-casualty response at Pennsylvania & North avenues, where witnesses watched people “drop left and right” before medics rushed at least 25 drug users to hospitals—an incident first reported by multiple local media outlets covering the scene.

Emergency crews converged on Penn-North just after 9:25 a.m. Thursday when callers reported clusters of unconscious people along sidewalks, alleys and both subway platforms. Responders upgraded the call to a mass-casualty event, dispatching 13 medic units and scores of police officers who taped off blocks while harm-reduction teams handed out naloxone and fentanyl test strips.

Health officials said no deaths had been confirmed by mid-afternoon, but five patients remained in critical condition. Investigators are testing drug samples to identify the substance behind what locals describe as a “bad batch.” Streets and the Penn-North Metro station were closed for hours as detectives canvassed for the source and warned users to carry Narcan and never use alone.

Key Details

• Patient count: 25 transported; five listed as critical, the rest serious to stable.
• Search area: Victims found along North Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue, subway platforms and nearby alleys.
• Rapid escalation: First three victims located behind a pharmacy; dozens more surfaced within minutes.
• Harm-reduction blitz: Outreach workers distributed naloxone on-scene and plan 24-hour support tents through the weekend.
• Active crime scene: Police treating the intersection as an investigation into drug sourcing; no arrests announced.

What the Experts Say About Available Resources

• Carry naloxone and know how to use it; free kits are available city-wide.
• Seek treatment resources: Mobile peer-recovery teams are stationed daily at Penn-North.

For More Information

• WBAL-TV 11: Witnesses describe West Baltimore mass overdose scene
• EMS1 / Baltimore Sun: 25 hospitalized after mass overdoses in Penn-North
• PEOPLE Magazine: At least 25 hospitalized, 5 critical after Baltimore overdose

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