BUENOS AIRES, Feb 5, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - The death toll among dozens of
people who consumed cocaine likely laced with opioids in Buenos Aires rose to
24 on Friday, with 23 still in hospital, health officials said.

   Eight of the hospitalized are in serious condition and on mechanical
ventilation.

   Officials said 24 people, aged between 21 and 58, have died since Tuesday
night from adulterated cocaine bought from dealers in the poor neighborhood
of Loma Hermosa, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Buenos Aires city
center.

   Most died far from the point of sale, 12 of them at home and two on the
road, unable to make it to a hospital on time because of the sudden effects
of the tainted drug. Many suffered heart attacks.

   Twenty-three remained hospitalized Friday, according to a provincial
government update.

   Three of them had been discharged but had to be re-hospitalized after
taking more of the cocaine, provincial health minister Nicolas Kreplak said.

   More than 200 other people sought medical intervention after consuming the
substance, presenting symptoms of varying degrees of gravity.

   - Arrests and seizures -

   Thirteen people rounded up in a police operation to establish the origins
of the tainted drug were due to appear before magistrates as part of the
ongoing investigation, according to the Telam news agency.

   They include the well-known leader of a drug trafficking network in
greater Buenos Aires, a 33-year-old nicknamed "El Paisa."

   The substance with which the cocaine was laced has not yet been confirmed,
but authorities say it is likely an opioid.

   Police have seized more than 20,000 doses of cocaine in a crackdown, but
have not revealed how many of these were from the laced batch.

   The incident has brought to light the dangers of illegal drug use,
especially of cheap, low-quality cocaine sold and consumed in Buenos Aires's
poorest communities.

   According to security chief Sergio Berni, at least 250,000 doses of
cocaine are sold daily in Buenos Aires province, home to some 40 percent of
the Argentine population of 45 million and with high poverty rates.

   Officials said Thursday that things were under control, but urged recent
buyers of cocaine in and around the capital city to throw it away.

   "Every dealer that buys cocaine cuts it. Some do it with non-toxic
substances such as starch. Others put hallucinogens in it, and if there is no
form of control, this kind of thing happens," Berni said.

   - 'Absolutely exceptional' -

   San Martin public prosecutor Marcelo Lapargo has said what happened was
"absolutely exceptional" and there was "no precedent" in Argentina.

   Illegal drug use has been on the rise in the South American country.

   In the mid-1980s, half a ton of cocaine was seized every year -- a decade
later, it was four times that, official data shows.

   In 2017, a record 12.1 tons of cocaine were seized in the country, but in
2020, the number fell to about 2.7 tons as consumption dropped during the
pandemic.