UPDATE: Melrose 21-Year-Old Dies From Reported Overdose

Editor's note: This article was updated on Monday at 3:08 p.m. with comments from Melrose Police Lt. Mark DeCroteau.

A 21-year-old Melrose man died from a reported drug overdose on Friday evening during a week in which Melrose Police responded to three reported overdoses.

At 8 p.m. on Friday, July 15, received a report of a 21-year-old on the floor at a Clinton Road home from a possible overdose. Melrose firefighters and police officers responded and reported a sudden death on the scene.

Melrose Police Lt. Mark DeCroteau said the death is under investigation by the Massachusetts State Police and the state Medical Examiner's office. He declined to comment on the substance involved in the reported overdose, citing the ongoing investigation.

On Thursday, July 14 at 2:10 p.m., Melrose Police responded to a medical emergency for an unresponsive 27-year-old man at a Mystic Avenue home, according to the police log. DeCroteau said that this incident was also a reported overdose.

The man was treated on scene by EMTs and transported to where treatment continued. DeCroteau declined to comment on whether this overdose was also fatal, citing medical privacy laws because the man was left in the care of the hospital.

Firefighters and officers also responded to a reported overdose on Brookledge Road on Tuesday, July 12. The log entry states that a caller reported a girlfriend overdosed. That person was transported to Winchester Hospital. DeCroteau said that the police report does not state whether the reported overdose involved a prescription or an illegal drug, but added that the victim was conscious when EMTs arrived on scene.

According to the most recent report available from the state Department of Public Health (PDF attached), during fiscal 2010—which runs from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010—there were 225 Melrosians who were admitted to state Bureau of Substance Abuse Services treatment programs.

Of those 225 Melrosians, 13 were under 21; 117 were in their twenties; 74 were 30-49 years old; and 21 were 50 or older. There were 172 men and 53 women admitted.

Also, 134 of those Melrose residents reported injecting drugs in the past year. Those admitted to programs reported using the following substances in the past year:

• Heroin: 136
• Alcohol: 106
• Cocaine: 50
• Marijuana: 38
• Crack: 18

Over the weekend next door in Wakefield, two people in Wakefield Police custody were taken to Melrose-Wakefield Hospital .