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Student suffers suspected overdose at Alexandria City High School

The Alexandria City High School marquee (staff photo by James Cullum)

A minor male Alexandria City High School student suffered a suspected non-fatal overdose at the King Street campus on Thursday, according to Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt.

Kay-Wyatt notified parents and staff of the incident in an email at 8:41 p.m. The Alexandria Fire Department responded to a call for a possible overdose at the school a little before 9:15 a.m., according to AFD. The student was transported to the hospital.

Kay-Wyatt wrote:

In accordance with Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Executive Order 28, which requires a divisionwide notification for all school-connected overdoses, I am writing to make you aware of a suspected school-connected, non-fatal student overdose that happened today at Alexandria City High School – King St. Campus.

An ACHS student also experienced a suspected overdose inside the High School earlier this year.

Kay-Wyatt included a fentanyl fact sheet in English, Spanish, Amharic and Arabic in her email, as well as a link to the ACPS webpage on substance abuse education and prevention. She also said ACHS students can talk to counselors and administrators if they need help, and can reach out to CrisisText and Crisis Link by texting CONNECT to 85511 or calling 703-527-4077.

About the Author

  • Reporter James Cullum has spent nearly 20 years covering Northern Virginia. He began working with ALXnow in 2020, and has covered every story under the sun for the publication, from investigative stories to features and photo galleries. His work includes coverage of national and international situations, as well as from the White House, Capitol, Pentagon, Supreme Court and State Department. He's covered protests and riots throughout the U.S. (including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol), in addition to earthquake-ridden Haiti, Western Sahara in North Africa and war-torn South Sudan. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.