COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The fentanyl problem in our community - and our schools - has prompted local leaders to host a town hall meeting. The meeting was held to give people information about the dangers of the drug, signs of overdose, and available resources.
Dr. Jessica Wise with District 11 says it's a big problem. “With generations, these things spread faster than we can keep our hands on them so what we are trying to do is make sure everybody understands the risks- everybody makes decisions, but do you understand the risks in front of you when you make those decisions and how they can drastically affect your life and what we can do to prevent those who aren’t even taking risks, they just don’t know what they’re getting into.”
Michael Allen, the Fourth Judicial District Attorney, provided citizens and educators information to identify signs of a fentanyl overdose and the resources available for both prevention and support.
Mimie Hall, a Health Teacher at Colorado Military Academy, attended Thursday's event. She told News5 it's crucial for parents and teachers to ahve open conversations with kids about the dangers of fentanyl.
"The more awareness that can be brought to our community as a whole, I think that our kids can be not shielded necessarily but made aware of what's out there and I think that's imperative of us as citizens to be able to help the kids be aware of those things," said Hall.
Last year, our area drug enforcement administration worked with several state and local agencies to seize more than 3.4 million fentanyl pills in the Rocky Mountain region and 2.61 million fentanyl pills in our state alone. Allen says he hopes to raise awareness and get people to start talking about the issue.
WATCH: Local Health officials raise the alarm on suicide and overdose deaths
____
____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
