Cops spread word, say ‘we can’t do it ourselves’

A GROUP OF NYPD officers and union officials gathered near Yankee Stadium on Wednesday to hand out brochures about the city’s opioid epidemic.

An estimated 1,075 New Yorkers died of opiate-involved overdoses last year — and experts fear the number will rise.

“We’re here in the Bronx today because there’s a spike in deaths, and we’re also in Staten Island where we also see a rise in these overdoses,” said Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch.

“So we’re saying educate your children. Help us get the job done. We can’t do it ourselves.”

Bronx Officer Christian Alcantara, 34, said he’s twice used the opiate antidote Naloxone to revive overdose victims.

In one instance, Alcantara discovered a woman unconscious in the bathroom of her Tremont home, a needle sticking out of her arm.

The 12-year vet said he needed to administer two doses of Naloxone before the woman came to.

“When she woke up, it was like nothing ever happened,” Alcantara said.

Alcantara was among the cops handing out the “Community Safety Bulletins,” which contained information about opioid abuse prevention and resources for people with addictions.

Cops targeted passengers outside the E. 161st St. train station in the Bronx and the St. George Terminal in Staten Island.

The bulletins also were mailed to households on Staten Island’s South Shore.

Police officers have already saved 111 lives using Naloxone, Lynch said.

Last month, Mayor de Blasio launched a $38 million-a-year citywide initiative aimed at reducing opioid deaths in New York City by 35 % over the next five years.

Last year, more than 1,000 people in New York City died in drug overdoses that involved an opioid, the worst year on record.

More New Yorkers died from opioid overdoses last year than from car accidents and homicides combined.

The NYPD plans to launch new Overdose Response Squads — which currently work on Staten Island, investigating each overdose and trying to hunt down the drug dealer responsible — in highrisk neighborhoods.

Cops also plan a public awareness campaign about the state’s 911 Good Samaritan Law, which grants immunity to people who call for help with an overdose from being charged with low-level drug possession or underage drinking.