EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — More than 2,220 purple and yellow butterflies cover the lawn outside the East Providence Public Library .
The butterflies are a visual representation of the hundreds of lives lost to accidental overdoses, according to library director Meredith Bonds-Harmon.
“The purple [butterflies] are the lives lost and the yellow [butterflies] are the ripple effect, or those affected by the loss,” Bonds-Harmon explained.
Bonds-Harmon said the butterflies also honor International Overdose Awareness Day , which is on Aug. 31.
More than 107,000 Americans lost their lives to accidental drug overdoses last year, of which 74,000 involved opioids, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
This is the third year that the library has created the butterfly memorial garden in an effort to raise awareness and comfort those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones.
East Providence Prevention Coalition’s Bethanie Rado said there are specifically 404 purple butterflies that represent the Rhode Islanders who died from an accidental overdose last year.