EVENT OF THE DAY
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[A community forum on drug trends will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 9, at St. John Lutheran Church in Sparta.
The forum will focus on substance abuse trends involving bath salts, heroin, methamphetamine and others. The presenter will be Master Sgt. Joe Beliveau of the Illinois State Police.
Beliveau is director of the Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Southwestern Illinois (MEGSI) at District 11 in Collinsville. MEGSI is an 18-person undercover narcotics group. Beliveau joined the Illinois State Police in 1990. Prior to his assignment with MEGSI, Beliveau headed the first Methamphetamine Response Team, supervising eight agents. He also worked as a patrol trooper and as an agent in the Organized Criminal Activity Unit, the General Assignment Unit and the Drug Conspiracy Unit.
Other invited guests for the forum, sponsored by Human Service Center, Human Support Services and Lutheran Child and Family Services, include city and county officials, medical and school personnel and local law enforcement.
Among the recent drug trends noted by the forum's sponsors is the use of certain bath salts as synthetic designer drugs. Brands such as Ivory Wave, Purple Wave, Bliss, Red Dove, Vanilla Sky and Cloud 9 - not to be confused with traditional bath salts - can be snorted, swallowed or smoked to mimic other hallucinogenic amphetamines. Sold in 600 milligram packets, these bath salts are available both online and at retail outlets. In 2010, there were 301 calls to poison control centers nationwide related to these bath salts. In the first three months of 2011, the number of calls had risen to over 1,400.
These bath salts are legal, although Granite City and Alton have both taken steps to ban them. At least two local hospitals have reported cases of bath salt overdoses.
Short-term effects include paranoia, hallucinations, delusions, agitation, suicidal thoughts, chest pains, headaches and combative behavior. Symptoms can last a few hours or several days.
St. John Lutheran Church is located at 1100 N. Market St. in Sparta. Attendees will be able to register for a $50 gas card. Anyone with questions or wishing to register for this event may contact Lutheran Child and Family Services at 618-443-2228