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An illicit fentanyl powder has made its way to southwest Montana.
There was alarming news last week in southwest Montana when Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff Ed Lester reported six non-fatal fentanyl overdoes in a 72-hour span.
According to Lester, a new and strong supply of illicit fentanyl powers has been introduced in the Butte area and appears to be causing the spike in overdoses.
Broadwater County Sheriff Nick Rauser said it is very concerning to see fentanyl powder in Butte, let alone anywhere in Montana.
While the Broadwater County Sheriff's Office has not had a lot of issues with fentanyl yet, Rauser said they have had a few stops where they found it, and drug trafficking on US 287 is always a concern.
"Most of those drugs are being transported from one community in Montana to another community in Montana. We have two K9s that are narcotic trained, and we send Deputies to lots of drug training to help combat this issue in Montana," Rauser said.
Earlier this year, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced that anti-drug task forces in Montana seized 150 percent more fentanyl during the first quarter of 2024 than during the same period in 2023.
In the first quarter of 2024, Knudsen reported Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area task forces seized 163,184 dosage units of fentanyl compared to 65,142 during the same time period in 2023.
To compare the troubling growing numbers, 188,823 dosage units were seized in 2022, and the number for all of 2021 was 60,557.
"We're on pace to far surpass last year's record-shattering number of fentanyl seizures. While I'm glad anti-drug task forces are successfully taking fentanyl off the street, it means more of this poison is making its way across the southern border and into Montana where it's killing men, women, and children," Attorney General Knudsen said in June.
With the troubling recent news in Butte and also on the statewide level, Rauser said parents need to educate their kids and tell them the truth about drugs.
"You never know if someone has put fentanyl in other drugs like meth or cocaine. It's a scary thing to think about with children. As a parent of a young adult, I try to be honest with my kids and explain the dangers of drug use and that you never know what could be in the drugs, and the consequences could be death, unfortunately," Rauser said.
