CARROLLTON (WBAP/KLIF) – North Texas leaders joined parents and students this week during a round table discussion at R.L. Turner High School in Carrollton about the dangers of Fentanyl.
Two parents who lost a child to fentanyl poisoning, and one student who witnessed a classmate overdosing took part in the conversation.
“I found my classmate in the bathroom five weeks ago and I didn’t think I could ever go back in there,” the high school sophomore said. “But the other day I went in, and I realize I’m going to be okay.”
This school year, there have been at least a dozen fentanyl-related overdoses and four deaths among students in Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD and Plano ISD. PISD participated in this week’s roundtable.
For longer than and hour, Senator John Cornyn heard from participants about their experiences as well as local prevention and treatment efforts, including a fentanyl PSA multi-media campaign and the successful installation of Naloxone stations in schools.
According to Corny, more than 1,600 Texans died from a fentanyl-related overdose in 2021, an 89% increase from 2020, and the synthetic opioid is now the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18-49.
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