PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) -- In the year since Rhode Island's Overdose Prevention Center opened, paramedics have been called only once — when a person overdosed on drugs laced with fentanyl, medetomidine, and xylazine.

"We had somebody who just really went out hard," said Ashley Perry, director of the Overdose Prevention Center and deputy director of Project Weber/RENEW. "It was the first time we ever had to call 911, and the only time we ever had to call 911."

The center is operated by Project Weber/RENEW, the state's largest center for harm reduction and recovery services. Individuals can use pre-obtained illicit drugs at the OPC under medical supervision.

Perry said when people in the OPC take something laced with xylazine, it's easy to detect based on their response. She added that th

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