Residents handed over more than 670 pounds of unwanted medications this weekend, more than double the amount they normally do during their semi-annual drug take-back.

Police officers at Bellevue City Hall, the Crossroads and Factoria substations collected 671 pounds of expired or unmated medications on April 30.

“Our drug take-back event was a huge success, we collected over twice the amount of unwanted medications that we normally do! I credit an increase in social media participation by residents, specifically Twitter and Nextdoor.com,” Bellevue Police spokesperson Seth Tyler told the Reporter. Social media allowed the Police Department to publicize the event to a large number of people across multiple digital platforms, at no cost to the taxpayers, he added.

The event was part of a larger national effort which addresses a vital public safety and public health issue.

Expired medications in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Studies show that many abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, many Americans do not know how to properly dispose of their unused medicine, often flushing them down the toilet or throwing them away – both potential safety and health hazards.

The drug take-back event provides a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of unwanted drugs, the police department said.