SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Loved ones are remembering a 15-year-old San Carlos girl who died from a suspected fentanyl overdose.
“Feels unreal. I wake up every morning. My heart drops every day,” said Talena Garrett.
Nine days later, she says the feeling of emptiness won't go away.
“Feels like a big hole in my heart, honestly,” said Garrett.
Two Fridays ago, her only sibling, Latanya, who had just turned 15, had a friend sleeping over at her home in San Carlos when that friend rushed into their mom's room.
"Around 5 a.m., her friend told my mom that she wasn’t waking up,” said Garrett.
Garrett says Latanya wasn't breathing. 911 operators instructed their mom on CPR, but when paramedics arrived, Latanya was pronounced dead.
“The world has lost a beautiful soul,” said Garrett.
Garrett calls her sister, a 9th grader at The Charter School of San Diego, a determined girl with dreams of owning a hair salon one day.
“She was very loving, very energized and very sassy,” said Garrett.
Latanya was always roping her sister into TikTok dance challenges.
“She was a great dancer. She would always come to my room and be like, ‘I just sent you the TikTok; go learn the dance. C’mon, c’mon, c’mon,’” said Garrett.
That bright young life was cut short by a possible overdose. Garrett says while there were some signs of concern, loved ones had no idea of any drug use.
“She did start feeling depressed. She slept a lot, so I think my mom was getting worried about that,” said Garrett.
Garrett says hours before Latanya died, her sister posted this photo of two pills on Instagram.
“The detectives said it looked like fentanyl,” said Garrett.
Latanya's autopsy is not yet complete. Police confirm an investigation is underway.
In 2021, fentanyl overdoses killed 812 people in the county. So far this year, the number of deaths was at 825 in the first six months.
“People want to numb a feeling, or party or be cool. Well, it's not cool at all,” said Garrett.
Garrett hopes by sharing Latanya's story, she can help another family avoid her heartbreak.
“I hope this makes people realize this is not a game. This is really serious, and this is killing people,” said Garrett.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the family with funeral and other expenses.
