West Hollywood Warns Residents About Fentanyl After Young Man Dies

The City of West Hollywood is taking measures to warn residents about the dangers of fentanyl after a young man died, at least in part, from the drug.

In May, Devon J. Lopez-Bergman was discovered dead in an apartment, along with Vaughn York, a 53-year-old chef for NBC Universal. While York's cause of death is still unknown, the Los Angeles County Coroner confirmed Lopez-Bergman died from a combination of cocaine, MDMA, and fentanyl, reports Wehoville.

The family of Lopez-Bergman started a GoFundMe page for his memorial service.

A legally prescribed pain reliever, fentanyl is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine. The Center for Disease Control stated that, "Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that has been involved increasingly in drug overdose deaths... from 2013 through 2016, the number of deaths approximately doubled each year." Fentanyl was involved in the overdose deaths of music icons Prince and Tom Petty.

The City of West Hollywood and local nonprofits responded to Lopez-Bergman's death, and many others, by providing drug users with ways to insure their substances are clear of fentanyl. In May, the City Council allocated $20,000 to APLA Health and the Los Angeles LGBT Center to provide fentanyl testing strips to anyone who wants them. The strips are available at all LGBT Center locations and APLA Health Centers. The Harm Reduction Coalition provides more information on testing strips and how to use them.

Meanwhile, $15,000 was allocated to APLA to create a public education campaign on fentanyl that targeted the LGBTQ community during Pride month.