The harrowing human toll of “Hometown Heroin”

Americas Now

This week on Americas Now: Hometown heroin

The small town of Huntington, West Virginia has the distinction of being the overdose capital of America. It also happens to be the hometown of CCTV correspondent Sean Callebs. So he spent the last eight months examining Huntington’s heroin epidemic and why it has such a hold on its people.

Tens of thousands of people around the world die each year of opioid addiction. More Americans have died from drug overdoses than from car accidents according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And these days the drug of choice is heroin. It touches every age and socio-economic class.

Perhaps you’ve seen the recent photos of adults OD’d in automobiles with their helpless children in the back. Heroin use in the U.S. has doubled in the past decade especially among young adults between the ages of 18 to 25.

And like in other communities across the country, the victims of heroin use in Huntington, West Virginia are not limited to just adults. In many cases the addicts are babies as well.

Watch Sean Callebs’ report on “Hometown Heroin” here.

The harrowing human toll of “Hometown Heroin”

The small town of Huntington, West Virginia has the distinction of being the overdose capital of America. It also happens to be the hometown of CCTV correspondent Sean Callebs. So he spent the last eight months examining Huntington's heroin epidemic and why it has such a hold on its people. Tens of thousands of people around the world die each year of opioid addiction. More Americans have died from drug overdoses than from car accidents according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And these days the drug of choice is heroin. It touches every age and socio-economic class. Perhaps you've seen the recent photos of adults OD'd in automobiles with their helpless children in the back. Heroin use in the U.S. has doubled in the past decade especially among young adults between the ages of 18 to 25. And like in other communities across the country, the victims of heroin use in Huntington, West Virginia are not limited to just adults. In many cases the addicts are babies as well. Watch Sean Callebs’ report on “Hometown Heroin” here.