DRUG USE IN SW FLORIDA

Everyone Can Help In Local War On Drugs

Monday's front page story in the Daily News contained hard, cold facts
about drug use in Southwest Florida.

Eight dead in Lee and Collier counties last year from heroin use.

Seventeen dead just in Collier County during the same period from cocaine use.

Eleven dead in the two counties from Methadone abuse.

Those should be sobering numbers for everyone, but they are not.

As one medical examiner noted in the story, "If the number of deaths is
increasing it's absolutely logical to deduce that more people are using."

That too is a hard, cold fact - one that parents, spouses and siblings
should note.

If you suspect a loved one is using drugs, seek help.

The numbers show that it's truly a matter of life and death.