Former Rare Staff
A Tennessee woman pulled her camera out after she says another driver nearly ran her off the road.
Videos by Rare
Marisa Cannida, of Knoxville, who was driving with her friend Detriedah Welsh, approached the vehicle after it stopped, only to find that the driver and the passenger were suffering from an opiate overdose. Cannida documented the incident and uploaded three pictures and 10 videos to Facebook.
“Witnessed a drug overdose today on [Magnolia]. Almost ran me and my friend off the road, and they hit [two] cars. God is so good. First responders saved their lives. We don’t give them enough credit. Thank you to the first responders!” she wrote.
Cannida captured photos and video footage of the men inside of the vehicle slumped over and unresponsive.
She also took photos and video of first responders helping the men.
The responses to Cannida’s post were a mix of shock, sadness and for some, disgust.
“I wish they would do away with Narcan,” wrote one person, referring to a brand name of the drug naloxone, which can quickly help reverse the effects of an opiate overdose. Another typed, “Hard times has nothing to do with taking drugs they should have let them die.”
“The lack of compassion you find in the Bible Belt. Astounding,” countered another commenter. “As someone who lost a best friend to addiction and a former counselor to the addicted seeking help, I have an enormous amount of compassion for addicts. I promise you, no one wakes up one day and says, ‘I think I’ll destroy my life today by getting addicted to heroin.'”
Knoxville Police Chief David Rausch told WATE, “Every life matters, and I want to make sure people understand that clearly.”
“This is a disease, and what happened is a result of their disease,” he added.
According to WATE, first responders were able to save the men’s lives by administering naloxone.
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