New fentanyl 'zombie drug' spreading throughout Philadelphia

A new, deadlier version of fentanyl dubbed “tranq dope” or “zombie drug” that can lead to necrosis is sparking new health concerns as it spreads throughout the tri-state area. 

Tranq is a mixture of fentanyl and Xylazine, an animal sedative used for livestock, according to the SOAR initiative, a nonprofit from Ohio that educated the public about deadly drugs.  

“It’s such a heavy sedative,” Tonja Catron, a SOAR outreach worker, said. “It’s very dangerous, especially when you add it on top of fentanyl.”

The users of the drug have reportedly seen their skin rot “from the inside out” and develop large sores that can get infected as a side effect, Jamill Taylor, a member of Philadelphia’s narcotics unit told the Addiction Center. 

"It's finding the easiest way out, the path of least resistance, and that is coming straight out through the flesh and eating their skin," Philadelphia business owner Frank Rodriguez told "Fox & Friends First" on Thursday. 

"When you're in a group of three or four people, you can smell rotting flesh, and you know that at least one of them is suffering from these open sores. It almost looks like the walking dead, zombies," he said.

The flesh-eating effects of the drug are so large that those who have been affected by necrosis have left users without fingers, toes, and limbs, or facing severe amputations. 

"I might even lose my legs. It has been going on for over a year now," a user of the drug, identified as Gene said.

In Philadelphia in particular, almost 90% of the drugs—from heroin to xylazine—sold in the city contain some form of Xylazine and are selling for as little as $4 a bag, Rodriguez said.