Drug Take Back Day Collects Nearly 700-Pounds Of Medication In Putnam Co.

Putnam County’s drug take back event was a success last weekend, according to officials with the Power of Putnam Drug Coalition.

“The weight we have in so far is right around 700-pounds, but there is still three sites that we do not have the weight for,” Power of Putnam Director Bill Gibson said. “All of that weight was a significant amount of controlled substances, and of course, those are the ones that are most subject to abuse.”

Gibson said during April’s event the county collected around 1,000 pounds of prescription medications. He said the weather was one of the reasons for the lower turnout last weekend.

“We like to think that a lot of people are keeping their medicine cabinets cleaner now so they don’t have as much backlog between these drug take back dates,” he said.

Gibson wants to remind residents that they can drop off unwanted medications anytime at one of the five 24/7 drug take back boxes around Putnam County.

The drop off boxes are located at police departments in Algood, Cookeville, and Monterey. Boxes are also located at the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office and Walgreens on Willow Avenue.