Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith told The Community Journal last week that fentanyl has single-handedly raised overdose rates in Walker County and across the nation.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin.
“It’s so dangerous, because many times people don’t even realize they are taking it,” Smith said. “They think they are taking marijuana or meth or cocaine, drugs they’ve taken for years, but they are laced with fentanyl, and a very small amount will kill a person.”
So far in 2023, Walker County has had 32 suspected overdose deaths. Smith said overdose deaths were down from 2019 to 2021 in Walker County, but have risen again since 2022 due mainly to fentanyl.
Smith added that current statistics show nearly 1,500 people die every week in the United States from drug overdoses.
“This isn’t a problem just in Walker County or even in a certain area of the country. This is an issue nationwide,” he said.
Currently, there are 32 people (pretrial) housed in the Walker County Jail for trafficking and/or selling drugs.
“We are doing our part in arresting the people who are selling and distributing the stuff, but we’ve got to continue to aggressively push awareness of the dangers of fentanyl,” Smith said. “People have to realize the dangers associated with taking something laced with fentanyl. It’s a life or death gamble they are taking every time they take something. It seriously could be laced in anything.”
Smith said the Walker County District Attorney’s Office as well as the judges in our local court system are doing their jobs to keep these offenders behind bars as long as possible.
“Our local judges and district attorney are supportive of the efforts to combat the drug overdose deaths plaguing our community,” Smith added. “If you are caught trafficking or selling fentanyl, our investigators, in conjunction with the Walker County District Attorney’s Office, will be making an argument to the judge that you are a danger to the community, which can result in an extended stay at the Walker County Jail. There you will remain until your case is adjudicated.”
Over the weekend, the Walker County Sheriff’s Office reported its narcotics division recently seized a more lethal version of fentanyl. Investigators seized Carfentanil, which is commonly used as an elephant tranquilizer.
Investigators utilized the Thermo Scientific Laser TruNarc handheld narcotics analyzer to test the substances that they come in contact with.
Carfentanil is 10,000 times more potent than morphine, 4,000 times the potency of heroin, and 100 times the potency of fentanyl.
Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid, and Narcan can be used to reverse a potentially fatal overdose.
Xylazine, a horse tranquilizer, is also being added to fentanyl. Since it is not an opioid, it does not respond to Narcan.
“There’s always the next thing,” Smith said. “If or when we get a handle on fentanyl, drug dealers are going to have something else. It’s always going to be a fight to get drug dealers off the streets and out of our community. We will also have to continue to raise awareness of what’s happening around it there, so our citizens know. It takes all of us working together to help limit the number of people dying from these substances.”
