Mangano Declares War on Heroin

With a heroin epidemic  taking young lives and spreading fear to the parents of  local teens,  County Executive Ed Mangano came to Massapequa to announce a new initiative in the war against the killer drug.

Magano joined with police and business leaders for a breakfast at Manor East Caterers to announce the creation of a new ad campaign designed to get parents to look for possible signs of heroin addiction in their children.

"There is a common thread when one of our youngsters  succumbs to heroin, and that is that parents were not aware." the county executive said.

"In most cases the parents say they had no idea.  They were not aware of the early warning signs. "

 The ads, which will be put up in local businesses , say that even straight-A students and athletes  can get hooked on heroin.  It urges parents to talk to their children and  not ignore potential problems.

The stakes have never been higher. Mangano said there were 48 heroin related deaths in Nassau County last year.

"There is a cottage industry that has grown up here, where drugs are being shuttled accross the border from Queens to Nassau," he said.

 But he added that authorities are making progress, noting that there have been 284 arrests made this year up from 177 arrests a year earlier.

  In addition to focussing on parental awareness, the county is also focusing on law enforcement and education in its war on heroin.