Torrington Police To Participate in National Drug Take Back Day
The Torrington Police Department is taking back unwanted prescription drugs April 28 at Torrington Police Department 576 Main Street.
Torrington, CT – On Saturday, April 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the Torrington Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration will give the public its 15th opportunity in 7 years to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. Bring your pills for disposal to the Torrington Police Department at 576 Main Street Torrington, CT. In addition to Torrington Police Headquarters, the Community Policing Unit will have Officers at several locations that day to collect unwanted drugs. This will help assist those that cannot make it to Police Headquarters. Officers will be stationed at the following locations;
• Laurel Acres- Torringford West Street 9:00am-10:00am
• Michael Koury Terrace 10:00am-11:00am
• Willow Gardens 11:00-12:00pm
• Torrington Towers 12:00pm -1:00pm
• Thompson Heights 1:00pm-2:00pm
• Torrington Police Department 10:00am-2:00pm
The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. The DEA cannot accept liquids or needles or sharps, only pills or patches.
Last fall Americans turned in 456 tons (912,000 pounds) of prescription drugs at more than 5,300 sites operated by the DEA and almost 4,300 of its state and local law enforcement partners. Overall, in its 14 previous Take Back events, DEA and its partners have taken in more than 9 million pounds—more than 4,500 tons—of pills.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health shows year after year that the majority of misused and abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including someone else’s medication being stolen from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
For more information about the disposal of prescription drugs or about the April 28th Take Back Day event, go to www.DEATakeBack.com or contact the Torrington Police Department 860-489-2000, visit us on Facebook, or our website at www.torringtonpd.org