Steve Hughes is reporting for the Times Union Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said heroin deaths are outpacing COVID-19 deaths in the region right now, following months of regular deaths from the disease caused by the coronavirus. Apple made the statement during County Executive Dan McCoy's daily press briefing. Apple said the region has seen a big spike recently, in part due to batches of cocaine mixed with heroin. "Right now heroin deaths in the Capital Region are far outpacing COVID-19 deaths and that's something we have to pay attention to," he said. Apple said another contributing factor was the months-long shutdown of in-person Narcotics Anonymous meetings. Law enforcement officers and addiction experts say the use of narcotics and overdoses has surged during the months since the coronavirus pushed many into lockdown. Details on the number of recent heroin deaths and how they compared to previous years were not immediately available. McCoy told reporters May 26, that no one had died from the coronavirus overnight, continuing a pattern that began late last week. The heroin deaths come less than a week after fentynal-laced cocaine was blamed for 30 overdoses in Rensselaer, Saratoga and Albany counties, including two fatal overdoses. Read the full story in the Times Union.