CHEMUNG COUNTY, NY (WENY) -- If you have any unused prescription meds or expired medicine, there's an opportunity to safely get rid of them next weekend. The Chemung County Sheriff's Office is taking part in the nationwide Prescription Drug 'Take Back' Initiative.

"It takes place [across] the country on the same day. Generally, they do an event in the springtime which is always in April, and then again in the fall in October. The upcoming event will be Saturday, April 27th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.," said Chemung County Sheriff, Bill Schrom.

Sheriff Schrom said it will be hosted at the Southport Volunteer Fire Department and the West Elmira Fire Department. He said they'll take all medications.

"We will take ointments, liquids, patches, we'll take animal medications, over the counter, prescribed, [and] illegal. The only thing we can't take is sharps (needles). Unfortunately, we're not allowed to take them any longer. You do not have to blacken out your name on the medications if you don't have the time to do it or you don't [want] to do it, but if you feel more comfortable, you certainly can," said Sheriff Schrom.

He said the medications are collected and put into a box. Once it's full, it's secured, it gets weighed, and it's taken to the Rochester DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) office and [then] it's destroyed at Covanta Niagara to be incinerated.

"We've been participating in this event since 2010, and since that time we've had 7,237 people attend the event over those years. We've collected 20,439 lbs total, so it's a very significant and successful event," said Sheriff Schrom.

He added, "It's something people look forward to each year. It [allows them] to clear things out. We're always getting calls throughout the year as to when the next event is. We enjoy being involved in it [and] some of the prescriptions out there are pretty potent, whether it's Oxycontin, morphine, there's some people with terminal illnesses... We don't want that medication to fall into the wrong hands."