Ole Miss community leans on each other in the wake of the death of two students
OXFORD, MISS. (WCBI) – It looks like a typical morning on the Ole Miss campus as tours are underway, and students are heading to class, but the deaths of two students earlier in the week have hit hard.
“Everyone’s kind of on edge, honestly,” said Ole Miss Junior Bella Cochran, who lives on campus and serves as president of RC South’s Hall Council. Cochran and other leaders in the residence hall are making sure students know there are resources available during this tragic time.
‘In our last board meeting, we discussed ways to help residents feel safe and secure , so we reached out to the William McGee Wellness Center, for flyers we could give out, if they or their friends are in one of those situations,” Cochran said.
On Monday, 18-year-old Aidan Hamilton, a freshman from Colorado, and 20-year-old Robert Strang, a junior from Georgia, were found dead. Hamilton was discovered at Stewart Hall, Strang at an off campus house. While toxicology tests are pending, authorities said packaged kratom sold from a retail store was found at both locations.
The entire campus has been in shock, and mourning. This photo, by a staffer at the Daily Mississippian, captured students at a prayer vigil.
Raegan Settle is managing editor of The Daily Mississippian, which was the first media outlet to identify the two students. Settle says the tragedy has raised awareness of the potential dangers of kratom and other unrelated products. She says it has also made more people aware of a standard treatment for opioid overdose.
‘My hope is the university will promote the McGee Center and all the vending machines across Oxford where students can obtain narcan for free, which can reverse the effects of drug overdoses,” Settle said.
And late Friday morning, authorities announced the arrest of two employees of an Oxford store. The men are accused of selling kratom and other illegal substances. The store’s owner is on the run.
While the arrests have not yet been connected to the two deaths, a release from the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office said authorities will be vigilant when it comes to finding and prosecuting business selling kratom and other illegal products.
The Oxford Police Department will hold a free narcan training class for the public. It is set for next Thursday, October First, at 6 pm at the Oxford Police Department. The address is 9 Industrial Park Drive, in Oxford. No registration is necessary.
