In todays Health Alert, Metro Detroit is under an extreme heat warning through 8 pm Tuesday. Hot weather is more than just uncomfortable - it can pose serious health risks.
My family and I love summer activities, but we always play it smart when the heat gets extreme. Thats because when its really hot, your body has to work extra hard to keep a stable internal temperature. You sweat more to cool down. And your heart may beat faster to move blood to your skin so heat can escape.
But when you lose too much fluid and important minerals like sodium and potassium, you can become dehydrated. That can cause your blood pressure to drop, making you feel dizzy, tired, or even faint.
And, if your body cant cool down fast enough, you can develop heat exhaustion, or worse, heatstroke. Heatstroke is a medical emergency. Your internal temperature can rise above 104 degrees, and your body loses the ability to bring it back down. At that point, organs like the brain, heart, and kidneys can become damaged and start to shut down. If not treated quickly, it can lead to seizures, coma, or even death.
Sadly, hundreds of Americans die from extreme heat every year, and many of those deaths are preventable.
Some of the early warning signs include muscle cramps, heavy sweating, headaches, dizziness, nausea, and feeling weak or short of breath. These are all signs your body is struggling to cool itself.
To stay safe, its all about prevention. Take it slow and drink water regularly, even if you dont feel thirsty. Apply sunscreen to avoid burns and wear lightweight, light-colored clothing to protect your skin. And dont forget a hat. Also, avoid being outside during the hottest part of the day, usually between 10 am and 4 pm. If you can, stay in air conditioning.
Its also important to check in on family, friends, and neighbors, especially older adults and young kids. People over 65, kids younger than 4, and people with chronic medical conditions are most at risk. If you take medications, ask your doctor or pharmacist if they can increase your sensitivity to heat.
The heat can sneak up on you, so pay attention to how youre feeling. Taking just a few simple steps can make a big difference in keeping you and your loved ones safe.
Russian drones and missiles killed at least 14 civilians and injured several dozen others in Ukraine in overnight attacks, local officials said Monday, with nine deaths reported in the capital, Kyiv, where an apartment building partially collapsed.
The attacks came as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began a visit to the United Kingdom, where he met privately with King Charles III.
Russia fired 352 drones and decoys overnight, as well as 11 ballistic missiles and five cruise missiles, Ukraines air force said. Air defenses intercepted or jammed 339 drones and 15 missiles before they could reach their targets, a statement said.
A Russian ballistic missile strike destroyed a high school later in the day in Ukraine's southern Odesa region, killing two staff, authorities said. No children were on the premises due to the summer vacation, said Zelenskyy, who described the strike as absolutely insane.
The strikes came nearly a week after a Russian attack killed 28 people in Kyiv, 23 of them in a residential building that collapsed after a direct missile hit. Russia has also hit civilian areas with long-range strikes in an apparent attempt to weaken Ukrainian morale.
'Coalition of murderers'
Russian forces have been trying to drive deeper into Ukraine as part of a summer push along the roughly 620-mile front line, though the Institute for the Study of War said progress has failed to make significant gains.
Russian forces are largely relying on poorly trained infantry to make gains in the face of Ukraines drone-based defense, the Washington-based think tank said late Sunday.
Zelenskyy said preliminary data indicated that Russian forces used North Korean missiles in the Kyiv strike. He described Russia, North Korea and Iran, which has provided drones to Russia, as a coalition of murderers."
Zelenskyy said Ukraines defense and new ways to pressure Russia will be the two main topics in his visit to the United Kingdom on Monday. Zelenskyy met privately with King Charles III and stayed for lunch, Buckingham Palace said. He was also expected to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer ahead of this weeks NATO summit in The Hague, Starmers office said.
Drones hit hospitals and residential areas
Drones and missiles hit residential areas, hospitals and sports infrastructure in numerous districts across Kyiv, emergency services said.
The most severe damage was in Shevchenkivskyi district, where a section of a five-story apartment building collapsed.
Nine people were killed in the district, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Ten others, including a pregnant woman, were rescued from a nearby high-rise that also sustained heavy damage. Dozens of vehicles were burned or mangled by flying debris.
Oleksii Pozychaniuk, 29, who lives in the building next to the one struck, said he heard the whistle of the rocket approaching and froze in terror before feeling the impact.
Windows burst out, glass was flying everywhere, he said. We barely made it downstairs with my child. Everything here was on fire.
Klitschko said rescue workers were searching for survivors.
The Russian attack also damaged the entrance to the Sviatoshyn subway station in Kyiv, slightly injuring two people, said Timur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv's military administration. He said more than 30 people were injured across the city.
Underground subway stations have served as shelters for those seeking protection from aerial attacks. During almost nightly strikes, stations across Kyiv are often filled with people waiting out the danger.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Nol Barrot said the latest strikes demonstrated Russias unlimited cruelty by deliberately aiming at civilian targets, and promised more European sanctions on Moscow.
Long process to identify returned remains
Elsewhere in Ukraine, a drone attack killed two people and wounded 10 more in the Chernihiv region late Sunday, authorities said. Three children were among the wounded, according to the regional administration head, Viacheslav Chaus.
Another person was killed and eight wounded overnight in the city of Bila Tserkva, around 53 miles southwest of the capital.
Meanwhile, Russias Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 23 Ukrainian drones overnight into Monday.
Ukraine will take at least a year to identify the thousands of soldiers' bodies repatriated by Russia and establish whether Moscow has mistakenly included more of its servicemen, Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.
Zelenskyy said Friday that Russia had included at least 20 of its own dead soldiers in recent exchanges with Ukraine, describing it as a result of Moscows disorganization in carrying out large swaps of wounded POWs and remains.
At least five of the bodies can be proven to be Russian, Klymenko told a press conference, with tests being conducted on others. Journalists were shown uniforms and items including cigarettes belonging to what Ukraine said were the five Russians.
An inert grenade was found inside a carry-on bag at Detroit Metro Airport earlier this month, according to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
TSA officers detected the inert grenade during a routine screening at a security checkpoint.
The security checkpoint was evacuated and closed until a TSA explosive specialist and airport law enforcement determined it was inert.
I am proud of our dedicated officers who remain vigilant and work hard to keep our transportation systems secure and the traveling public safe, said TSAs Federal Security Director for Michigan, Reggie Stephens. When individuals bring prohibited items to our checkpoints, it significantly slows down the security screening process for other travelers.
The TSA is reminding people that replicas of explosives, such as hand grenades, are prohibited in both checked and carry-on luggage.
Ina Garten, aka the Barefoot Contessa, will be speaking at Detroit's Fisher Theatre this winter.
A Food Network icon, Garten has written 13 cookbooks and is stopping in Detroit as part of her series 'An On-Stage conversation with Ina Garten', with stops in Birmingham, Alabama, and Atlanta, Georgia before heading to the Motor City. She will be in Detroit on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
As part of the evening, Garten will discuss and elaborate on themes from her new memoir, 'Be Ready When The Luck Happens', which released in Fall of 2024. Garteen plans to touch on her difficult childhood, meeting her fiture husband and getting started in the food industry after answering an ad for a specialty food store.
Tickets for the evening go on sale this Friday, June 27, at 10 a.m. and start at $79. You can buy tickets at this link.
President Donald Trump confirmed that no one was harmed in Iran's retaliatory attacks on an American base in Qatar.
In a post on Truth Social, President Trump said Iran gave the U.S. "early notice" before firing 14 missiles at Al Udeid Air Base. He added that 13 of those missiles were "knocked down" and the 14th was "set free" because it was not threatening.
"Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same," President Trump's post says.
A U.S. official told Scripps News that Iran used both short and medium-range ballistic missiles in the attack, which was condemned by Qatari officials.
A top Iranian official said the number of missiles used in the attack in Qatar was the same as the number of bombs the U.S. dropped on three of its nuclear facilities on Saturday.
"The base targeted in the attack by Iranian forces was far from urban facilities and residential areas in Qatar," the official said.
Around the same time of the attack in Qatar, officials were reportedly informed about a potential attack on Ain al-Assad base in western Iraq. However, the Associated Press reports that the missiles never arrived and no one claimed responsibility.
The incidents occurred less than 48 hours after the U.S. struck Irans nuclear sites. President Trump said the operation caused monumental damage.
Pentagon officials described it as the largest operational deployment of B-2 bombers in U.S. history, with more than a dozen 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bombs used in the assault.
The escalation has raised fears of a broader regional conflict, which began June 13 when Israel launched airstrikes that killed senior Iranian military commanders and nuclear scientists.
Since then, Israel and Iran have exchanged near-daily strikes. Iran claims hundreds have been killed in the ongoing war, while Israel has reported limited casualties. However, some Iranian missiles have breached Israels Iron Dome defense system and caused damage to buildings.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect the circumstances surrounding a base in Iraq that was initially believed to be targeted by Iran. The country has only claimed responsibility for the attack in Qatar.
This spring, when a friend sent Juli Shamash a Scripps News article about a pair of infant twins who survived a 2024 fentanyl poisoning in southern California, she says she started crying tears of joy.
I was like, Oh my gosh! I was so happy, she said.
In 2018, the California mom had lost her own son, Tyler Shamash, 18, to a fentanyl overdose.
In the years following his death, Shamash relentlessly and successfully pushed for a new state law in Tylers name that requires most California hospitals to include fentanyl testing in urine drug screenings to help determine what may be causing a patients symptoms.
A test like that, she said, might have prevented her sons overdose.
Tylers Law took effect in 2023.
Last year, the twins received hospital fentanyl tests, their parents say saved their lives.
Mother reflects on Tyler Shamash's legacy
It kind of makes me feel like (Tylers) death was not in vain. Like, something positive came out of his death, Shamash told Scripps News.
Who was Tyler Shamash?
Tyler Shamash was an adventurous teen who had a love for computers, an interest in Bitcoin, and a knack for building and fixing things.
He was like a little professor. He was on the spectrum (with) mild Asperger (syndrome), so if there was something he was interested in, he would know everything about it, Shamash said.
He was articulate, loving, polite and funny, but he also suffered from bad anxiety, Shamash said, and when he was 14, he started smoking marijuana.
He said, Mom, when were high, I fit in. No one notices Im different, Shamash recalled.
Eventually, he sought out stronger drugs, and then we noticed he had a problem, Shamash said.
Tyler attended a wilderness program, boarding school, therapy, and he was in and out of various sober living facilities to help kick the drug habit. However, he eventually started using heroin and overdosed.
At the time, no one knew the drugs also contained fentanyl, Shamash said.
We got a phone call at 3 oclock in the morning saying, Hes ok, but hes on his way to the hospital, she said. I should have had it on my radar because he was using drugs, but I just never thought that he would overdose because he is so smart. He knew every drug and what was in every drug.
Tyler was released from the hospital without being tested for fentanyl, according to Shamash, and the next day, she said he died from fentanyl poisoning.
Tylers Law
After Tylers Law passed in California, Shamash continued to push for federal legislation in his name.
Twice in recent years, members of Congress have introduced a bipartisan bill in Tylers name that would require the United States Department of Health and Human Services to study how frequently hospitals test for fentanyl and use the results...to issue guidance to hospitals on implementing fentanyl testing in emergency rooms.
So far, the bill, supported by bipartisan members in the Senate and the House, seems to be stalled.
Mother talks about learning when Tylers Law was enacted
Two mothers connect
After Shamash read the Scripps News article in which the mother of the twins, Lauren Hinton, credited Tylers Law for saving her two boys and the rest of her family, Shamash said she reached out to Hinton on social media.
I just said, I was so happy to see that this law in honor of my son was able to save her boys, Shamash said.
In the spring, Hinton told Scripps News she believed the fact that her children were tested for fentanyl in the hospital helped trigger a chain of events that also allowed her and her partner to seek support for their addiction.
All I know is they caught it in enough time because (the twin I took to the hospital) could have overdosed and died, she said. It saved his life. It saved my life. It saved everybodys life involved. Everybody.
Knowing the family is working on recovery and that the twin boys survived, that was like the icing on the cake, said Shamash.
Over the course of more than two years, Scripps News has been reporting on fentanyl poisonings among babies, toddlers, and young children.
Here are some of the faces of children who died in recent years:
Serenity Hernandez, Avondale, Arizona
Date of death: 9/16/2023
She was a really happy baby and she was always smiling and laughing. I loved to be around her and I also enjoyed seeing her after a long day at school. It made my day to see her smile and laugh. Serenitys older sisters, ages 11 and 8.
Mitchell Robinson, East Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Date of death: 6/26/2022
I miss him. I miss my grandbaby. I miss him coming in my room at night, jumping on my bed like it was a trampoline or just walking in there and giving me a hug, and he would kiss me, and he would say I love you...we only had a short time with him, and thats real hard. Stephanie Murray-Robinson, grandmother.
Madison Stodulski, Rolla, Missouri
Date of death: 12/21/2019
She was a spitfire. She loved to dance. She loved Shrek. Just so smart. Very smart. She loved candy - M&Ms. Chicken nuggets were her favorite. She loved being outside, loved going to the park. Just an all-around 22-month-old angel. She was amazing. Christina Forester, grandmother
Lucca Lien, Wichita, Kansas
Date of death: 7/3/2022
He loved to play and love on his big sister Oakleigh, who he absolutely adored. Walking quickly turned into running and exploring everything that he could reach. He was a content, quiet baby that loved to be tickled. We will always cherish his smile and laughs. Lucca Liens obituary
Leightyn Lee
Date of death: 1/16/2022
He was such a loving, fun (child) that loved to play with his big brother. Full of life, such a cuddle bug with his family. Diane Blankenship, grandmother
Jaxon Vogt, Ludlow, Kentucky
Date of death: 3/18/2021
Jaxon was a true bundle of joy and one of the happiest boys you would ever meet. You would never find him without his heart melting smile on his face. Jaxon was a joy to everyone he met. Even though he was only 2 years old, he was wise beyond his years. He oved to play with his older brothers, loved all dog dogs and being outdoors. Jaxon Vogts obituary
Jream Smith, Dearborn Hts., Michigan
Date of death: 9/16/2022
You were loved beyond measure, and we will always remember your sweet smile. Your little footprints have left an imprint on our hearts that will never fade. #JusticeforJream Jamie Smith, mother
Hailey Goding, Old Town, Maine
Date of death: 6/5/2021
She was just full of life, full of it. Shed make you laugh all the time. Always doing silly things...Shed want to just climb up on the bed and snuggle, and wed read a book or something like that. She was a love bug. She was. She loved everybody. Ursula Picciano, grandmother
Ezikeal Aguilar, Pueblo, Colorado
Date of death: 9/23/2024
Ezikeal was the sweetest little boy, he filled our hearts with joy! Ezikeal gave so much love as we all played, laughed and cherished every moment we had with him! He will be a part of our hearts for eternity! Jose Naranjo, grandfather
Damien Coats, Apache Junction, Arizona
Date of death: 1/25/2023
I'm pretty sure Damien, who was three years old would just like to be home with his mom (and) his dad, and he would like to play...He would be five years old this year. That means kindergarten. Im sure he would love to be at the playground playing and stuff. Lt. Thomas Parker, Apache Junction Police Department
Charlie Sumner
Date of death: 12/16/2022
"Shes so Beautiful, so pure. Constantly cares about everyone, all of her family and friends...She was patient. So beyond patient, and she continued to show her generosity to everyone. Im forever in awe of how wise she was, beyond her years...We love you Charlie. Josie Benner, neighbor
Brighton Hendron
Brighton was and still is a light. She loved traveling and going to the park and dressing fancy like her mom. Her favorite spot was the beach and her favorite color is pink. She had the brightest beautiful eyes. Cheyenne Helm, mother
Bair Johnson, Palm Beach, Florida
Date of death: 8/22/2019
Bair offered to the world his beautiful smile, adorable laugh and contagious love to everyone he met. In his short life, he touched so many. He was full of wonder and joy. Our precious miracle, sweet boy, and light of our lives leaves us all smiling through our tears. We are comforted by the fact that nothing can separate love. Because of this, we will always be connected. Bair Johnsons obituary
Breckin Danter
Date of Death: 9/3/2024
Breckin was so full of life and laughter. Everything was funny to him. He was definitely all boy and loved Paw Patrol, dinosaurs, and monster trucks. But most of all he loved his mom and sisters. He was a light in the world and without him its a little dimmer. He was the best boy I couldve ever asked for and my soul longs for the day I meet him again." Brittany Mahaney, mother
Aviyana Montoya, Brighton, Colorado
Date of death: 1/2/2022
Avie loved the simple things in life she would play with something so simple and small over anything big. Avie loved to be the center of attention no matter where we went. Every person who walked through the door she carried a special relationship with each and everyone of them. One thing for sure she had a way to forget all your worries and man she had a smile that would light up a room and laughter that would never be forgotten." Aviyana Montoyas obituary
When Emery Patterson was suffering from a fentanyl poisoning due to his mothers drug use in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 2022, his mother, Gabrielle Marshall, Googled whether she might be imprisoned if she called for help.
She texted her friend to request Narcan, an opioid reversal medication, but ultimately waited too long to seek professional medical help, and the little boy, who was just one year old, died.
In 2023, an eight-month-old baby, Serenity Hernandez, died of a fentanyl poisoning in Avondale, Arizona, after she was found unresponsive and turning purple in bed.
Even though she was airlifted to a hospital, doctors could not save her.
And in 2024, the Phoenix mother of one-year-old Jody Jackson delayed seeking medical care after she realized the child may have ingested fentanyl.
The baby did not survive.
In each of these cases and many other Arizona child deaths and near deaths, the children's families had had previous contact with the Arizona Department of Child Services, the state agency charged with child protection.
Any time a child that is known to us dies is horrendous, said Kathryn Ptak, director of the Arizona Department of Child Safety. Its horrendous for the agency. Its horrendous for the workers.
Ptak, a long-time AZDCS employee, was confirmed as the agencys director in May 2025 after being appointed in January.
Nobody comes into this work, making no money and putting themselves in danger, and spending time away from their families, to have a kid on their caseload die, right? Its terrible, she said.
In Jacksons case, the department previously investigated the childs mother, Natalie Tate, after receiving a 2022 report that Tate had abused drugs during her pregnancy, resulting in the child being born substance exposed.
According to an AZDCS review of the death, the investigation assessed (the child) and a sibling as safe with their mother with a safety plan in place. The family was referred for services but did not engage in services.
The case was closed about eight months before Jackson died.
Fentanyl Cases
Ptak said Arizona has seen an uptick in drug exposure cases in the past year, including several involving fentanyl.
The drug is being taken much more seriously when it comes to considering whether or not to remove a child from the home, she said.
It is so much more deadly than some of the other drugs," Ptak insisted.
How one state handles child welfare when fentanyl is involved
According to child fatality reports publicly released by AZDCS and other records and information gathered by Scripps News, at least 42 Arizona children have died or nearly died of a fentanyl poisoning since 2020.
There may be other cases about which Scripps News is unaware.
The vast majority of children who die of fentanyl poisoning and who die of any type of abuse in our country are known to social workers, so our system is failing, said Darcy Olsen, the founder and CEO of the Center for the Rights of Abused Children.
Every single one of these children's lives needs to be respected and honored, and the way to do that is to force the agencies to open up these cases so that the public can see exactly what went wrong, so that it doesn't happen again, she said.
How one state handles child welfare when fentanyl is involved
While some agencies keep many details of state and local child fatality reviews private, the state of Arizona makes public its summaries of fatality reviews and the agencys history with families that have experienced a death or near-death of a child.
If there is a simultaneous criminal case involved, however, sometimes the details of the incident may not be revealed immediately.
In some cases, it may take months or years.
We try to be as open and transparent on (the cases) as possible, said Ptak.
Child safety agencies also have varying statutory powers when handling child protection as well.
In Arizona, for example, AZDCS is a secondary prevention agency, Ptak said. The agency can only intervene in a childs welfare after it has received a call about abuse or neglect, she said.
We are waiting until a childs already been abused or neglected before were statutorily allowed to intervene, so, a lot of times when were seeing these cases for the first time is after something bad has already happened, Ptak said.
When to Remove a Child
In Arizona, making the decision to remove a child from a home is based on many factors.
Ptak said the agency uses a safety decision-making guide.
The agency asks, Is the child safe, or is the child unsafe? And if the childs unsafe, are there ways to keep the child safely in the home with other protections around?
A case may be closed if a caregiver successfully participates in support services and has a clean drug test, Ptak said. However, we all know relapse is part of recovery. And so, we might then see six months later or a year later that the parent has returned to using substances, and then we get another call. We don't have a crystal ball. We don't know what's going to happen in these cases.
The decision about a childs safety may also be made based upon whether a reliable relative is available to assist in oversight or management of the childs care, she said.
We have a lot of cases where we interact with families and we close (the case), and everybody goes about their lives and are just fine, Ptak said.
Child Advocates Weigh In
Most of these children who die are known to authorities. What also happens is theyre just sending them home, Olsen said.
Olsen said her pro bono law clinic recently handled an Arizona case in which an infant was placed back in a home where a teenager had recently died of a fentanyl overdose. Without specific names and records, Scripps News could not verify details of the incident.
This is happening every single day, not just in Arizona, but all across the country, she said.
She acknowledged that sometimes children in abuse and neglect cases are wrongly taken from their homes, but the reality is, she said, that children are dying even though theyre on the radar of these agencies. And we need to put a stop to it. We need to hold the agencies accountable, and we need to save these childrens lives.
The reality is that if youre an addict and you cant take care of yourself, you cant take care of a child, Olsen said.
Sometimes removal is better than keeping the child at home, said Marie Cohen, a Washington, D.C.-based child advocate who has spent years reviewing abuse and neglect cases in various parts of the country.
She also writes a blog called Child Welfare Monitor.
Im all for not removing the child if you can protect the child at home, she said.
However, I think we have to adjust our thinking a bit more where sometimes removal is better than the alternative, which would be keeping the child at home, she said.
It doesnt make sense to give a family chance after chance after chance.
How one state handles child welfare when fentanyl is involved
Ptak said sometimes her agency is hindered by the court system when making decisions about whether a child should be removed from their home.
Sometimes, the kids are returned home over the agencys objection, Ptak said. There are a lot of parties involved in these cases. Parents have attorneys, children have attorneys, and everybody kind of sees it a little bit differently.
Prevention Programs for Older Youth
In Arizona, fentanyl poisonings are also prevalent among older youth, many of whom live in group homes, Ptak said.
The agency has been working to address that demographic in recent months with treatment programs and other safety measures.
We came up with a policy where all caregivers have to have Narcan in their possession. So, if you are a foster caregiver, if youre a group home, you have to have a dose of Narcan available to you in case a child in your care is exposed or overdoses, she said.
Child welfare agents who investigate cases involving child neglect and abuse, however, are not required to carry Narcan or distribute it to the families they are investigating, Ptak said.
Depending on the severity of the allegations and depending on what happened, sometimes we can do interventions, like we have a lockbox program where we talk to parents about, You gotta lock up your drugs... here's Narcan ... the things they need to make sure that the child is staying safe.
In March of 2025, a 911 dispatcher in Spokane Valley, Washington answered a panicked call.
My nephew is blue, a woman reported, crying. His mom said he might have gotten fentanyl from her purse!
Another voice joined the call as the woman sobbed. I Narcanned him twice, referring to the drug Narcan which reverses the effects of an opioid overdose. The women said the victim was not awake, and his breathing was rattling.
And how old is he? the dispatcher asked. Hell be a year old, answered the childs aunt.
The local sheriffs office said the child recovered, and his mother was arrested.
The 911 recording is one of many the Scripps News team has gathered and reviewed, along with police body-camera recordings and law enforcement interview videos, in an effort to understand how children too young to choose to use drugs end up ingesting them anyway, and how they can be saved.
The reporting process
In 2022, Scripps News began tracking cases of fentanyl poisonings among babies, toddlers, and young children. We wanted to show how the powerful opioid is affecting young children.
The team spent months gathering as many cases as we could, building our own database from scratch from local news stories, state child fatality and near-fatality reports, and medical examiner records. Then, we decided to find out as much information as we could about each case gathering police reports, court records, and child welfare records.
We revisited the cases over time, tracking whether anyone was arrested for exposing the child to fentanyl, whether anyone was convicted, and re-requesting records that were previously withheld after cases closed or were adjudicated. In some cases, we filed appeals to receive records that were withheld due to the perception of secrecy in cases involving children. Some records are still being withheld. Along the way, weve continued to add newly-reported cases to our dataset.
Now, more than two years later, our team has compiled more than 460 cases of reported child opioid poisoning incidents from nearly every state in the U.S. from 2018 to 2025 a total that is almost certainly an undercount. That tally includes more than 260 deaths. Trends found across the data set include:
At least 145 cases involved children who survived after receiving Narcan or naloxone. Many of those cases involved children who needed multiple doses or even a constant drip of the medication to recover underscoring the need for children to receive medical attention even after they receive Narcan.Β At least 63 cases involved caregivers who said they fell asleep and awoke to find children unresponsive or exhibiting signs of an overdose. There are often warning signs that children are in unsafe situations before a poisoning happens. More than half of the cases involved children from families who had histories with child welfare agencies and/or recent encounters with police involving drugs, child abuse, or child neglect.
Some exposures were reported while children were at daycare or in the care of babysitters, but most of the cases reviewed by Scripps News occurred when children were in their own homes or in the care of their own parents or relatives.
It is probably the biggest crisis weve seen in child welfare in the past 20 years, said Darcy Olsen, founder of the Center for the Rights of Abused Children.
How children are exposedΒ
Body-worn camera video from the Village of Liberty, New York, shows the chaotic moments in 2023 when police responded to the lobby of a hotel to find an unconscious child clad in a onesie as her panicked parents looked on.
An officer performed CPR for several minutes before a medical team arrived, but the little girl, Akasha Luvert, did not survive.
The babys mother told police she found her daughter lying on the floor, lifeless, next to a piece of foil that the parents used to smoke drugs. Police believed Akashas father was supposed to be supervising her, but he fell asleep.
Police across the country investigating child fentanyl poisonings often report finding pieces of foil, straws, baggies, and other tools used to consume drugs left within reach of children. Police have reported finding foils that appeared to have been bitten, and pieces of plastic baggies have been found in the mouths of children being resuscitated.
In Florida, police found video evidence showing how 1-year-old James Valiquette was exposed before his death in 2022. A court document describes a father, recorded on surveillance video in his living room, falling asleep, which allowed the victim to roam around the living room unsupervised. About 20 minutes later, police describe the child picking up what appears to be a scrap of tin foil from the floor, and placing it in his mouth.
Police said the video showed the childs mother entering the room, discovering something in his mouth and removing it, before putting the boy to bed. She found him dead the next morning. (The childs father pleaded guilty to manslaughter last year. The mother has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.)
In other cases, medical providers said they found pills or pieces of pills in a childs mouth.
When you look at these situations where kids are in [a] home where illicit fentanyl is being used, we know that is a very dangerous situation, said Dr. Natalie Laub, a San Diego child abuse physician. We also know when caregivers, people responsible for the children, are under the influence, they cannot provide a safe and nurturing environment for that child.
Lauren Hinton, a southern California mother, told Scripps News she doesnt know exactly how her five-month-old twins ingested the drugs she and the childs father had been using in 2024. A police report said both children tested positive for the drug at a local hospital.
It wouldnt surprise me if it was residue or maybe a binky laid down on something, or me making a bottle, Hinton said. I was at a point of just unmanageability and carelessness. It was just super out of control at that point.
Both children survived, and their parents spent several months in jail. This past spring, Hinton and her partner, Alexander Santiago, told Scripps News they were in recovery and had regained custody of their twins. They said the incident set their family on a new course.
One of us probably wouldve ended up dying, Santiago said. It saved our lives, honestly.
Symptoms of poisoning
When a mother in Florida noticed her childs breathing was unusual in March of 2022, she pulled out her phone and hit record.
This cant possibly be a normal sleeping sound, she wrote while sending the video to family members, according to a court document. Police said the mother called 911 hours later, but help did not arrive in time to save her baby.
Unusual breathing sounds, snoring, gasping, gurgling, and gagging are symptoms frequently described by witnesses in records linked to child fentanyl poisonings reviewed by Scripps News.
People have coined it the 'death rattle,' said Dr. Roneet Lev, a former Chief Medical Officer at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, who highlighted the Scripps News reporting on her podcast. That often happens before they stop breathing and that's the time to intervene.
Witnesses also describe children turning blue or purple due to lack of oxygen, seeming lethargic, acting drowsy, and dozing off.
If a kid is found not breathing, pinpoint pupils, blue, unconscious the number one, two, and three most likely things that it is, is a drug overdose, Dr. Laub said. That kid should get Narcan immediately in the field. You should treat them as if they're an adult who's overdosed on fentanyl.
Scripps News interviewed a child who was old enough to remember how it felt when she inadvertently ingested fentanyl when she said she swallowed a pill she found in her kindergarten classroom.
I wanted to go to sleep so bad, Addison Mott said. I was dizzy. When I would walk, I would start wobbling.
Call 911 and give Narcan
When police arrived at a home in Wisconsins Columbia County in November 2023, a father quickly insisted he knew the source of his 1-year-olds distress.
He needs Narcan! He needs Narcan! the father told an officer and an emergency responder on video. He got into a pill! The officer quickly administered a dose of the overdose-reversing medication, and the child survived.
Scripps News reviewed numerous cases in which caregivers quickly disclosed children may have ingested drugs, but also reviewed cases in which caregivers either said they did not know or withheld that information, potentially delaying a childs treatment.
One report in Arizona from 2022 said a child did not receive Narcan from paramedics because the parents denied drug use, until a hospital screening revealed fentanyl in the childs system. The child received Narcan after the test results came in and survived.
The best thing is just [to] be truthful with the medical staff, and give them the ability to use their resources to properly treat [the child], said Lt. Thomas Parker, a police lieutenant at the Apache Junction, Arizona police department whose office oversaw the investigation of a childs 2023 death. The likelihood of survival is much greater.
In several cases, caregivers were accused of waiting for hours to seek medical treatment for children, attempting instead to reverse the childs symptoms with Narcan on their own.
In June, a couple in Illinois were indicted on charges of first-degree murder after prosecutors said they ordered Narcan from Uber for their toddler before seeking professional help. By the time they called 911, police said, the child could not be saved.
Many reports said children needed multiple doses of the medication in the hospital, often a constant drip, and other medical interventions to recover from their overdose symptoms. Thats why health officials emphasize that professional medical care is needed in the event of a poisoning incident.
Search for solutionsΒ
Child protection agencies across the country have been searching for solutions for years to protect children at risk of fentanyl ingestion.
I remember telling my husband, We've had like three or four in one week of these kids that were exposed to fentanyl and either died or nearly died, and feeling like this is something that we're gonna have to start talking about, said Kathryn Ptak, the director of the Department of Child Safety in Arizona.
Some child welfare agencies have implemented interventions like distributing lockboxes, fentanyl test strips, and Narcan to families with histories of substance use. In Colorado, child welfare officials said caseworkers in some counties instruct families how to use Narcan and more children are surviving these incidents.
Some states have launched public awareness campaigns about keeping drugs out of the reach of children and messaging that it is safe to administer Narcan to children. Communities like Pennsylvanias Allegheny County have used opioid settlement funds to expand access to treatment for substance use disorders.
Some deaths have prompted reckonings in child protective agencies, as grieving families and child safety advocates have argued the government is not doing enough to remove children from homes where they are exposed to substance use.
I would say the system at large failed this child, Libertys police chief, Steven DAgata, told Scripps News. The protection of children [should be] first and foremost in all of our minds when we're dealing with families that are struggling with substance use. The government must take an active role in taking steps to ensure that the children are safe.
Drug overdose deaths overall declined by close to 27% nationwide in 2024, according to the CDC, and experts told Scripps News its important to maintain that momentum to protect children.
This is the time to keep the pressure on, keep pushing on the right interventions to reduce overdose, said Dr. Joshua Black, a Denver-based researcher who studied the increase in non-fatal pediatric fentanyl exposures. Reducing access, finding treatments, having reversal agents like naloxone available, will keep the trend downward.
We know how to solve this problem, Dr. Rahul Gupta, the former White House drug czar under President Biden, told Scripps News. Its critical we embrace the policies without regard to politics, those that work, like making sure that life-saving medications are available [and] people have access to treatment and recovery services.
While the response from Iran will largely dictate future events, several risks loom for Americans both at home and abroad.
Risk #1: American Servicemembers in the Middle East
Approximately 40,000 American military personnel are stationed in the Middle East, including Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. An attack from Iran or its proxies on U.S. troops is a real possibility.
"The only things that Iran can really pull off are attacking American troops with missiles in bases in Iraq, you know, [or] blowing up the Strait of Hormuz," said Ian Bremmer, a foreign policy expert.
Risk #2: Threats to American Civilians
The Department of Homeland Security has issued a bulletin warning that "The ongoing Iran conflict is causing a heightened threat environment in the United States." Concurrently, the State Department has alerted Americans traveling abroad, advising that "There is the potential for demonstrations against U.S. citizens and interests abroad. The Department of State advises U.S. citizens worldwide to exercise increased caution."
Risk #3: Rising Gas Prices
Iran has a significant influence over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery through which approximately 20% of the global oil supply passes. Any obstruction by Iran could lead to soaring gas prices. The price of oil has already increased in recent days following the strikes authorized by President Donald Trump. Notably, China has become more reliant on the Strait of Hormuz for oil supplies, having ramped up its intake of Iranian oil in recent years.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Ford Motor Co. is recalling nearly 200,000 electric Mustangs because the door latches could falter, potentially trapping passengers in the back seat.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford is recalling 197,432 Mustang Mach E midsize SUVs, model years 2021-2025.
The government agency that regulates automobile safety said that the electronic door latches may remain locked after a driver or front seat passenger exits the vehicle and shuts the door, potentially trapping a child or other passenger who is unable to use the interior door releases.
The NHTSA said letters notifying owners of the safety risk were scheduled to be sent on June 23.
Ford dealerships will fix the problem by updating the vehicles' software, with the remedy expected to be available by late September.
Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Fords number for the recall is 25S65.
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-888-275-9171), or go to www.nhtsa.gov for more information.
This year's field is nearly set with 10 major championship winners, 67 PGA Tour winners and 12 of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Those players in the top 50 OWGR are:
No. 5 - Colin Morikawa No. 7 - Keegan Bradley No. 12 - Hideki Matsuyama No. 17 - Ben Griffin No. 20 - Patrick Cantlay No. 29 - Wyndham Clark No. 36 - Akshay Bhatia No. 38 - Min Woo Lee No. 39 - Cameron Young No. 44 - Tony Finau No. 46 - Byeong Hun An No. 48 - Max Greyserman
There are four open spots from the Monday qualifiers.
The Department of Homeland Security is urging Americans to remain vigilant following U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, warning that the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel has led to a heightened threat environment inside the United States.
In a new threat assessment, DHS officials say individuals in the U.S. could be inspired to carry out acts of violence in response to the escalating conflict. They note that previous attacks on American soil have been motivated by anti-Semitic or anti-Israel sentiment, and warn that the current crisis could increase the risk of similar violence.
That risk could rise further, the agency said, if Irans leadership were to issue a religious decree encouraging retaliatory attacks against American targets.
The advisory also warns that Iran maintains a long-standing intent to target U.S. government officials it holds responsible for the 2020 killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani.
In addition to the threat of physical violence, DHS said it expects a rise in low-level cyberattacks against U.S. networks by pro-Iranian hacktivist groups. The agency also cautioned that cyber actors tied to the Iranian government may attempt more sophisticated operations targeting critical infrastructure.
The warning was issued after President Donald Trump confirmed that the U.S. carried out airstrikes on Irans Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan nuclear sites as part of what the Pentagon called Operation Midnight Hammer.
DHS said it is closely monitoring developments and coordinating with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.
President Donald Trump believes "monumental damage" was done to Iranian nuclear sites following U.S. airstrikes over the weekend in what the White House has coined Operation Midnight Hammer.
In a post on his Truth Social platform Sunday night, President Trump said "Obliteration is an accurate term!"
"The white structure shown is deeply embedded into the rock, with even its roof well below ground level, and completely shielded from flame," he said, referencing satellite imagery shared following the attack. "The biggest damage took place far below ground level. Bullseye!!!"
Speaking during a White House briefing on the attack early Sunday morning, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said an array of U.S. B-2 stealth bombers, fighter jets, refueling tankers, decoys and precision guided missiles were used to successfully carry out the overnight strikes on Iran's Fordow, Natanz and Esfahan nuclear sites.
Pentagon officials claim it was the largest B-2 operational strike in U.S. history, which included dropping over a dozen Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bombs, and launched the U.S. into Israel's conflict with Iran.
"For the entirety of his time in office, President Trump has consistently stated over 10 years that Iran must not get a nuclear weapon, full stop," Hegseth said. "Thanks to President Trump's bold and visionary leadership and his commitment to peace through strength, Iran's nuclear ambitions ahve been obliterated. Many presidents have dreamed of delivering the final blow to Iran's nuclear program, and none could until President Trump."
Iran confirmed its nuclear sites were hit, but did not elaborate on the extent of the damage. However, the country's foreign minister has warned that American involvement in its conflict with Israel could prove very, very dangerous for everyone.
Meanwhile, Israeli officials said Monday it successfully launched additional airstrikes on Iran, despite international calls for deescalation. The Israel Defense Forces say the strikes hit the notorious Elvin Prison in Tehran, as well as a security headquarters for Iran's paramilitary revolutionary guards.
The attack came after Iran launched around 30 ballistic missiles targeting Tel Aviv and Israel's third largest city. Some missiles evaded the country's multi-layered air defense system, resulting in significant destruction on the ground.
Fortunately, there were no reports of any deaths, although approximately 80 individuals sustained injuries, according to local ambulatory services. The heightened state of alert, however, stretches beyond Israel, affecting neighboring Gulf states including Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, which host thousands of U.S. service personnel.
Iranian officials have already threatened potential retaliation against U.S. military bases in the region. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard asserted that the extensive U.S. military presence is a vulnerability rather than a strength.
Detroit has some of the best pizza in the country. We know it, and everyone else knows it. On Monday, June 23, the country celebrates the delicious square pizza with National Detroit-Style Pizza Day.
Watch below: The story of Detroit-style pizza
The story of the Detroit-style pizza
The story of the Detroit-style pizza starts on Six Mile Road and Conant Street on Detroit's east side. The building that currently stands there is Buddy's Pizza, but in 1946 it was Buddy's Rendezvous.
Were at the original location where the pizza began, chief brand officer for Buddy's Pizza Wesley Pikula said.
The man who brought this style of pizza to lifeGus Guerrathe original owner of Buddy's.
He had heard stories of guys coming in after the war talking about pizza, and so they pursued chasing down a way to make it, Pikula said.
Pikula said Guerra needed something to bake the pizzas in. So he asked his customers who typically worked at tool and die shops to borrow some of the square pans they used to collect tools
So they brought in these trays and they threw dough down in these trays and they baked them," Piikula said,"And they found that it was an amazing bake.
Pikula says the story of Detroit-style pizza starts with the pan because its thick crust and square style is what sets it apart.
There are great places around the area where you can get Detroit-style pizza. Below you'll find a list of many of them
Marine Corps veteran Adrian Clouatre doesn't know how to tell his children where their mother went after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers detained her last month.
When his nearly 2-year-old son Noah asks for his mother before bed, Clouatre just tells him, Mama will be back soon. When his 3-month-old, breastfeeding daughter Lyn is hungry, he gives her a bottle of baby formula instead. Hes worried how his newborn will bond with her mother absent skin-to-skin contact.
His wife, Paola, is one of tens of thousands of people in custody and facing deportation as the Trump administration pushes for immigration officers to arrest 3,000 people a day.
Even as Marine Corps recruiters promote enlistment as protection for families lacking legal status, directives for strict immigrant enforcement have cast away practices of deference previously afforded to military families, immigration law experts say. The federal agency tasked with helping military family members gain legal status now refers them for deportation, government memos show.
To visit his wife, Adrian Clouatre has to make an eight-hour round trip from their home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to a rural ICE detention center in Monroe. Clouatre, who qualifies as a service-disabled veteran, goes every chance he can get.
Paola Clouatre, a 25-year-old Mexican national whose mother brought her into the country seeking asylum more than a decade ago, met Adrian Clouatre, 26, at a southern California nightclub during the final months of his five years of military service in 2022. Within a year, they had tattooed each other's names on their arms.
After they married in 2024, Paola Clouatre sought a green card to legally live and work in the U.S. Adrian Clouatre said he is not a very political person but believes his wife deserved to live legally in the U.S.
Im all for get the criminals out of the country, right?" he said. "But the people that are here working hard, especially the ones married to Americans I mean, thats always been a way to secure a green card.
Detained at a green card meeting
The process to apply for Paola Clouatre's green card went smoothly at first, but eventually she learned ICE had issued an order for her deportation in 2018 after her mother failed to appear at an immigration hearing.
Clouatre and her mother had been estranged for years Clouatre cycled out of homeless shelters as a teenager and up until a couple of months ago, Clouatre had no idea about her mother's missed hearing or the deportation order, her husband said.
Adrian Clouatre recalled that a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services staffer asked about the deportation order during a May 27 appointment as part of her green card application. After Paola Clouatre explained that she was trying to reopen her case, the staffer asked her and her husband to wait in the lobby for paperwork regarding a follow-up appointment, which her husband said he believed was a ploy.
Soon, officers arrived and handcuffed Paola Clouatre, who handed her wedding ring to her husband for safekeeping.
Adrian Clouatre, eyes welling with tears, said he and his wife had tried to do the right thing and that he felt ICE officers should have more discretion over arrests, though he understood they were trying to do their jobs.
Its just a hell of a way to treat a veteran, said Carey Holliday, a former immigration judge who is now representing the couple. You take their wives and send them back to Mexico?
The Clouatres filed a motion for a California-based immigration judge to reopen the case on Paola's deportation order and are waiting to hear back, Holliday said.
Less discretion for military families
Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in an emailed statement that Paola Clouatre is in the country illegally" and that the administration is not going to ignore the rule of law.
Ignoring an Immigration Judges order to leave the U.S. is a bad idea, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a June 9 post on X which appeared to refer to Clouatre's case. The agency added that the government has a long memory and no tolerance for defiance when it comes to making America safe again.
Adrian Clouatre said the agency's X post does not accurately reflect his wife's situation because she entered the country as a minor with her mother, seeking asylum.
She was not aware of the removal order, so she was not knowingly defying it, he said. If she had been arrested, she would have been deported long ago, and we would never have met."
Prior to the Trump administration's push to drive up deportations, USCIS provided much more discretion for veterans seeking legal status for a family member, said Holliday and Margaret Stock, a military immigration law expert.
In a Feb. 28 memo, the agency said it will no longer exempt from deportation people in groups that had received more grace in the past. This includes the families of military personnel or veterans, Stock said. As of June 12, the agency said it has referred upward of 26,000 cases to ICE for deportation.
USCIS still offers a program allowing family members of military personnel who illegally entered the U.S. to remain in the country as they apply for a green card. But there no longer appears to be room for leeway, such as giving a veteran's spouse like Paola Clouatre the opportunity to halt her active deportation order without facing arrest, Stock said.
But numerous Marine Corps recruiters have continued to post ads on social media, geared toward Latinos, promoting enlistment as a way to gain protection from deportation for family members.
I think its bad for them to be advertising that people are going to get immigration benefits when it appears that the administration is no longer offering these immigration benefits, Stock said. It sends the wrong message to the recruits.
Marine Corps spokesperson Master Sgt. Tyler Hlavac told The Associated Press that recruiters have now been informed they are not the proper authority to imply that the Marine Corps can secure immigration relief for applicants or their families.
Detroit is getting a new mayor for the first time in more than a decade. Not sure who should get your vote? Take Outlier Medias quiz to find the candidates who align with your vision for the city.Β
In just 21 questions, youll get matched to the candidates who share your views about urgent issues facing Detroit like safety, housing, transportation and more.Β
There are 11 candidates in the running: nine on the Aug. 5 primary ballot, plus two certified write-ins. The two highest vote-getters will face off in the general election, Nov. 4.Β
Unfamiliar with the candidates? You can explore their bios, see why they took certain positions and as a bonus, check out their favorite song with a Detroit connection.
Metro Detroit native Joe Hooks will make his PGA TOUR debut this week in Detroit after winning The John Shippen Men's Invitational.
Hooks, 32, grew up in Southfield and Commerce Township and graduated from the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy.
Hear from Hooks after the win in the video below
Joe Hooks speaks after John Shippen victory
Over the two-day John Shippen tournament, Hooks shot a 68-66, combining for 10-under par, beating the rest of the field by three strokes.
After going to college at Wayne State, Hooks turned professional in 2017 and has won four times on the Advocates Professional Golf Association Tour (APGA) and has played in the John Shippen four times.
He told Rocket Classic officials he grew up playing at Detroit Golf Club and estimates he's played more than a thousand rounds at the club.
Unreal. You cant write it any better, Hooks said in a statement. We used to talk about PGA TOUR events maybe coming here when I was younger, so its crazy that there is one here now and I get to play in it finally.
You never know when its going to be your time, Hooks added. Being born in the city and growing up in the city ... everything about me is rooted in Detroit. To have this moment right now, finally, is surreal.
Intersport, the sports marketing and media agency, created The John Shippen in 2021 to provide Black men and women golfers an opportunity to play on the LPGA and PGA Tour. It's named after John Shippen, Jr., who was the first Black golf professional in the U.S.
Golf wont have more diversity and Black representation unless you keep drawing more from underprivileged communities, Hooks added said. Im talking about it at all levels. There is probably more high-level talent now than ever as far as Black golf goes, and there are still none of us on the PGA TOUR. So, you have to have more kids interested from the communities that are full of Black players. I think thats going to be how golf will continue to change over the next couple decades. Thats why I take what I do as a professional golfer so seriously.
In 2023, Chase Johnson won the John Shippen and later made the cut at the Rocket Classic, the first time a Shippen winner had made the cut.
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