Mega strong opioid 'pyro' found in Glasgow involved in one in nine Scotland drug deaths

New statistics have revealed that a superstrong opioid with street name 'pyro', which has been found in Glasgow and across the country, is involved in one in nine drug deaths in Scotland. Pyro, the scientific name for which is etonitazene, part of a group of substances called nitazenes, can be 800 times more potent than morphine. It is manufactured in illegal labs before being used as a cutting agent in heroin, the Sunday Mail reports. Experts fear that pyro could be fuelling Scotland's recent spike in drug deaths, as 283 suspected fatalities occurred between June and August in figures 12 per cent higher than the same period last year. The substance was linked to 28 overdose deaths in the first three months of 2025, and 68 deaths between April and June, accounting for 11 per cent of total drug deaths for the latter three-month period. But experts say that figure is likely an underestimate because of how quickly nitazenes leave the body. And with the substance accounting for so many drug deaths all over the country, it's no surprise that heroin samples in Glasgow have tested positive for the toxic nitazenes, with Public Health Scotland sharing images of the contaminated drugs. Professor Andrew McAuley, a drugs expert at Glasgow Caledonian University, said Scotland tends to see sudden “waves” of nitazene-contaminated drugs rather than a constant supply. Most recently he pointed to an influx of contaminated “green heroin” around Easter that led to a spike in ambulance attendances and overdose deaths. The expert said: "This wave seemed to be a bit more -significant in terms of the numbers of areas involved. “It wasn’t just concentrated in a couple of areas, it was found in both the west coast and the east coast and it involved larger numbers. “Then it seeped away again, so it does come and go. But the worrying thing for me is that the two or three times we have seen it come in, it seems to escalate each time.” The synthetic opioid is similar to fentanyl, which has devastated the US, with the contaminated drugs often being hundreds of times stronger than heroin. Public Health Scotland’s Radar team said in its latest quarterly drugs report: “Detections of -nitazene-type opioids in deaths reached their highest level to date. In Q2 of 2025, detections sharply increased to 12 per cent (74 deaths). Etonitazene was the most common nitazene, detected in 68 deaths (11 per cent).” Sign up to our daily Glasgow Live newsletter here to receive news and features direct to your inbox Join Glasgow Live's WhatsApp community hereand get the latest news sent straight to your messages.