Mass Overdose of K2 Synthetic Marijuana Eyed as Cause of 'Zombieland' in Brooklyn

The synthetic marijuana is believed to have caused dozens of overdoses.

ByABC News
July 13, 2016, 10:54 AM

— -- A mass of overdoses in a single intersection of Brooklyn, New York, sent 33 people to the hospital on Tuesday, police said, with one resident calling it "Zombieland."

Authorities are investigating whether K2, a kind of synthetic marijuana, caused the overdoses, the New York City Police Department said, noting that all of those who overdosed are believed to have survived.

Reports of a string of overdoses event first came in around 9:30 a.m. and at least one man suffered a seizure as a result of an overdose, according to ABC's New York station WABC.

"People sleeping outside, they do everything outside. It's not good for the area, for the kids," one man who witnessed the scene told WABC.

Throughout the morning, there were people in stretchers or unconscious on the street as a large number of police officers and EMTs responded to the scene. Local resident Brian Arthur recorded the scene on his phone, dubbing it "Zombieland."

"These people, they can't get enough of this K2 stuff and it's really ruining this area. It's crazy right now," Arthur said in a video he posted on Facebook that appears to show a person in the throes of synthetic marijuana.