Hillsborough Mayor Helps Spread Overdose Awareness After Saving A Life

Orange County’s communities are no stranger to the broader opioid epidemic faced by the country, and the local governments and first responders try to keep people prepared for knowing what to spot when someone is overdosing.

One example happened earlier this month where an unexpected hero stepped in to ultimately help save a life: the Hillsborough mayor.

Mark Bell was driving to town through the neighborhoods along North Wake Street on June 10 when he saw someone laying on the ground near one of the homes.

“At first glance,” the mayor told 97.9 The Hill, “it looked like he’d fallen off the roof. And I went over, tried to communicate with him…he was unresponsive [and] sweating, convulsing, labored breathing.”

Those symptoms, and Bell’s discovery of a backpack lying in the driveway, led him to believe something else was going on and he called 911.

“At first, it was kind of hard to recognize what it was because the gentleman was convulsing, and it looked like a seizure,” Bell said. “I thought it could’ve been an overdose, but I wasn’t really sure because I’d never seen that firsthand.

“A few minutes later, the Orange Rural Fire Department came up and immediately started checking him out, and then Orange County EMS pulled up,” he added. “And in the span…it took for them to arrive, the gentleman [started turning] blue.”

Orange County EMS quickly administered one dose, and then two, of naloxone spray – a powerful narcotic used to reverse the effects of opioids for a short period of time. Since the rise of opioid use and overdose deaths, there’s been a push to ensure first responders and community members have access to the treatment for emergency situations like the one Bell saw.

The mayor said roughly a minute after the naloxone was used, he saw the man sit up and his breathing return to normal – pulling him out of the overdose and allowing him to get further treatment.

The incident marked the second overdose case stopped in Hillsborough this year, after the police department reports responding to eight in 2024. The town’s police officers are trained to carry and administer naloxone spray as well as spot the signs of an overdose. The county’s emergency responders and health department are similarly equipped – and the effect of seeing the June 10 scene led Bell to ask if residents can be trained too.

The answer is yes, said the mayor, and he is already working with the police department to provide a public demonstration in the coming weeks.

“I asked the police chief if we could do that [training] for the Hillsborough town board,” said Bell, “maybe during a town board meeting to help raise awareness – of what that is, what it looks like, where to get training, what the drug does. Just to increase the chances of someone else who is [overdosing] getting that care they need as quickly as possible.”

Equipment and training are also available at the Orange County Health Department clinic in Hillsborough’s Whitted Center. And police say the critical first step in response – that does not require any training – is calling 911 if you see someone who may be overdosing. For Mayor Bell, it likely helped save the life of the man he found.

“I mean, this gentleman was turning blue…he was dying,” said Bell. “If I’d not driven by, or if someone else had driven by a minute or two later, he would not have come back.”

Photo via Mark Bell for Hillsborough.

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Hillsborough Mayor Helps Spread Overdose Awareness After Saving A Life

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