State and local law enforcement in Tennessee are investigating after two teenagers were found dead of a suspected drug overdose at a high school this week.
A third teen was also taken to a hospital in critical condition during the incident at Fayette-Ware High School in Somerville, a town of less than 3,500 people about 50 miles northeast of Memphis, the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office released in a statement.
All three teens, one 16 years old and the others age 17, were completing their junior year at the high school, Fayette County Public Schools released in a statement on Wednesday.
The school reported the students were outside the school during the incident, though it did not specify where.
Just before school’s graduation
The sheriff’s office told local outlet WRGE Memphis they were notified about the incident at 4:40 p.m., just hours before the school’s graduation took place.
Chief Deputy Ray Garcia told the outlet officers responded to the school for a report of two people that “appeared to not be breathing.”
The outlet also reported the teen who survived was in stable condition Wednesday.
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The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation told USA TODAY Thursday it is assisting the sheriff’s office in the death case.
No additional information, including whether any charges have been filed in the death case, has been released by authorities.
Neither law enforcement agency or the district could immediately be reached by USA TODAY Thursday morning.
Vigil set at Fayette-Ware High School
“We want to send our thoughts and prayers to the families of the young ladies who lost their lives,” the district’s Superintendent Dr. Versie R. Hamlett said in the release. “This situation has rocked our family.”
Grief counseling is being offered at every school in the district, Hamlett said.
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A balloon release vigil is slated to take place at the high school at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the sheriff’s office or TBI.
Natalie Neysa Alund covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.
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