A year after Tom Petty died at age 66 of an accidental medication overdose, his family members, band mates and others discuss what went wrong and what, if anything, can be done to save others from the same fate.
When Tom Petty was rushed to a hospital one year ago in full cardiac arrest, two words immediately sprang to many minds: Not again.
Weeks later, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s report confirmed what many family members, friends and fans feared: Petty had accidentally overdosed.
Among the combination of sedatives, anti-depressants and pain killers was the opiod fentanyl, the same drug on which Prince overdosed in 2016. According to his wife, Dana, Petty endured the pain of a fractured hip throughout a 40th anniversary tour with his longtime band, the Heartbreakers.
“If he hadn’t gone on tour and [instead] had the hip replacement surgery, he would still be with us,” Dana said at the Malibu home she shared with the Rock and Roll Hall member, who finished up nearly six months of shows the week before he died.
more at Source: Tom Petty’s death is still a hard reminder for aging rockers about the downside of life on the road – Los Angeles Times