At Least 6 Homeless Men Overdose On Drug Believed To Be Spice On Skid Row

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) —  Six adult men, all believed to be transients, overdosed on the synthetic drug Spice Friday evening near Skid Row.

A police officer who responded to the scene was also reportedly overcome after inhaling the marijuana knock-off.

KCAL9's Erica Nochlin said the homeless men were all transported to the hospital.

The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the scene -- the 420 block of San Pedro Streer -- just after 7:15 p.m.

Nochlin reported the men and the officer are all expected to be okay.

Officials told Nochlin the drug -- known to cause hallucinations and psychotic episodes -- is very common on Skid Row.

Andy Bales, a CEO of the Union Rescue Mission, described to Nochlin what it looks like when someone has taken too much of the drug.

"One guy even actually saw me," Bales said, "through blocks of glass. It's glass that's almost bulletproof. And he saw me and punched the glass. That's how wound up he got."

She also spoke to a resident in the area who called the problem "an epidemic."