Ohio continues to fall further into a drug epidemic.

There was yet another outbreak of drug overdose deaths in the state — this time officials say seven people died in one day in the Cleveland area.

Tests were being conducted to figure out which drugs were involved in the Saturday deaths, Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner Thomas Gilson said.

There was another outbreak of drug overdose deaths in Ohio: seven people died in one day in the Cleveland area

Ohio has been among the hardest hit by the opioid scourge in America, with 3,000 unintentional drug overdoses last year — eight per day. In one egregious case, Rhonda Pasek (left) and James Acord overdosed on heroin with their four-year-old grandson in the car

The outbreak comes after 52 people died from heroin or fentanyl during August in the Cleveland area

Officials believe the drugs involved were either heroin or fentanyl.

'This cluster of deaths is deeply concerning,' Gilson said in a statement.

'Although there is no clear link between the individuals, this number clearly raises the possibility of a very deadly drug in our community.'

He issued a warning to take extreme caution while also advising people not to use illicit drugs.

The deaths were reported across the county — in both Cleveland and its suburbs — and weren't limited to one area, Chris Harris, a spokesman for the medical examiner, said Sunday.

The outbreak comes after 52 people died from heroin or fentanyl during August in the Cleveland area.

The opioid deaths last month were the most in the county's history, the medical examiner's office said.

Cuyahoga County, which has about 1.2 million residents, is on pace to record more than 500 overdose deaths from heroin or fentanyl this year, Cleveland.com reported.

The opioid deaths last month were the most in the county's history, prompting action from community leaders like Christel Brooks (center) to try to raise awareness to the problem

Debra Hyde (pictured) was found unconscious in her truck — her eight-month-old grandson in the backseat — while parked at a gas station in front of a wall of propane tanks in Elyria, Ohio

The wave of deaths around Cleveland follows outbreaks of overdoses in Akron and Cincinnati involving the animal sedative carfentanil.

Hospitals in the Cincinnati area have seen more than a dozen overdoses a day since the powerful drug used to sedate elephants was found in the area's heroin supply about two months ago.

In one six-day span last month, there were 174 overdoses reported in Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

Addiction to opioids such as heroin, fentanyl, codeine and morphine has reached crisis point in many states in the US.

Across Ohio. which has been among the hardest hit by the opioid scourge. there were 3,000 unintentional drug overdoses last year — or eight per day.

Fentanyl was to blame for nearly 40 per cent of overdose deaths in Ohio last year, state data revealed.

The Drug Enforcement Agency said the drug Fentanyl was being used to cut heroin on the streets to stretch dealers' supply.

First responders had to break two windows in order to extricate Hyde (pictured) and her grandson from the vehicle

Meanwhile, first responders nationwide say there is an ongoing sentiment some people tell them they should just say no to using so many resources on drug abusers.

Authorities say people have expressed frustration about rescuing heroin addicts who often immediately resume using the potentially deadly drug.

There are also concerns voiced about the wide-ranging social and government budget costs involved, including for the overdose antidote naloxone.

First responders nationwide say there is an ongoing sentiment some people tell them they should just say no to using so many resources on drug abusers

An effort by authorities in Ohio's Hamilton County to get a dangerous heroin batch off the streets by offering immunity for people who turn in drugs drew a rebuke from Sheriff Richard Jones in neighboring Butler County, who argued it only enables dealers and users and gives them an excuse if they are caught.

'I understand the frustration,' said Police Chief Thomas Synan Jr. of Newtown, Ohio, who heads a Cincinnati-area heroin coalition task force.

'I understand the feeling that someone is doing something to themselves, so why do the rest of us have to pay? But our job is to save lives, period.'

Synan said unlike with repeat heroin overdosers, he has never had members of the public say he shouldn't try to save a habitual drunk driver after an auto accident or someone who has repeatedly attempted suicide.

Marion, Ohio, Fire Capt. Wade Ralph said heroin has an 'extremely expensive' toll on his department, struggling to keep up while being understaffed and relying on donations from health organizations for naloxone to revive those who overdose.

'If they weren't doing their job, they'd all be dead,' said Christel Brooks, a recovering addict in Cincinnati who said she's been clean for 12 years now.

She said the problem is lack of treatment facilities and other resources for intervention before rescued addicts resume drug use.

Along with the tireless efforts by Ohio first responders to save heroin users, an increasing challenge with more powerful drugs showing up, some backlash is also showing up from people who question the resources being used to revive overdosed users and to try to get them into treatment

There have been a number of egregious cases of overdoses in Ohio recently.

On Sept. 19, a grandmother was found passed out after overdosing on heroin in her pickup truck as her 8-month-old grandson was sitting in the backseat.

Debra Hyde was discovered unconscious in her truck while it was parked at a gas station in front of a wall of propane tanks in Elyria, Ohio.

First responders had to break two windows in order to extricate Hyde and her grandson from the vehicle.

Earlier in September,Ohio's East Liverpool police shared shocking images of a couple overdosing on heroin with a four-year-old boy in the back seat of a car.

The couple — James Acord, 47, and Rhonda Pasek, 50 — were detained after a policeman spotted their Ford Explorer being driven erratically.

An unresponsive woman was caught on camera on the ground suffering from an overdose in a store — as her 2-year-old daughgter tried to pull her arm, wailing

Officer Kevin Thompson followed the car as it weaved along the road before it stopped suddenly behind a school bus that was dropping off children.

Thompson found Acord with 'pin point pupils', his 'head bobbing back and forth his speech was almost unintelligible'.

Acord then tried to speed off, but he reached into the car and yanked the keys out of the ignition.

It was then that Officer Thompson noticed Pasek's four-year-old boy strapped in the back seat. He was taken into custody by county children's services.

Cleveland has struggled with a number ofbig-city ills — a shrinking population, entrenched poverty and neighborhoods beset with decay and violent crime.

Ohio's most populous city is now considering a merger with East Cleveland, a place so impoverished, its citizens sometimes fill their own potholes.