Sierra Leone Declares State Of Emergency After Drug Addicts Dig Up Graves To Get High
In a bizarre series of events, Sierra Leone has declared a state of emergency after rampant drug abuse involving dead bodies.
The drug, which has been dubbed "Kush," is a psychoactive blend of highly addictive substances that has been popular in the country for years.
Politician Julius Maada Bio, who has served as the nation's president since 2018, called the drug a "death trap," saying the addiction poses an "existential crisis." Among the many toxic and addictive ingredients in the drug includes ground-up human bones.
In response, security has been increased in and around cemeteries to prohibit drug addicts from digging up skeletons from graves.
Young people sitting on corners with limbs swollen from the drug are a common occurrence in West Africa's Sierra Leone, according to BBC News.
An addict who reportedly seeks the drug told the outlet that the drug has a "tight grip on him" and can't stop due to the effects of the substance. "I don't like doing this, but I cannot leave it because I enjoy it," he claimed.
The BBC reported that hundreds of young men have been admitted into hospital facilities facing complications and have died from organ failure caused by Kush, although an official death toll has yet to be announced.
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Sierra Leone's Psychiatric Hospital reported that between 2020 and 2023, admissions to the facility linked to the harrowing drug have increased by a whopping 4,000%, reaching 1,865.
"Our country is currently faced with an existential threat due to the ravaging impact of drugs and substance abuse, particularly the devastating synthetic drug kush," President Bio stated in a nationwide broadcast.
Per Bio, 59, centers will be established in every district and "adequately staffed by trained professionals to offer care and support to people with drug addiction" in order to handle the pressing matter.
