LONGMONT, Colo. (KDVR) – Officials issued a warning Thursday about the deadly drug fentanyl: Powdered forms of the substance are showing up on the streets in Boulder County.
Health officials tell FOX31 fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. It is also laced into other narcotics being sold on the streets in Boulder County.
On Sept. 16, first responders found evidence of powdered fentanyl while responding to a suspected overdose death.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reports 920 deaths caused by fentanyl poisoning in Colorado in 2022. The number of fentanyl-related deaths per 100,000 people in the state has more than quadrupled since 2016.
Boulder County’s Harm Reduction Program is reaching out to students and those in communities with known drug use.
“We provide services for people who are smoking, snorting and injecting substances” said Madeleine Evanoff of Boulder County Public Health.
The county conducts outreach to inform residents of the presence and dangers of fentanyl and the many forms and colors in which it is produced.
The program also targets those who need assistance and support.
“Substance abuse does exist, it likely always will, but what we can do is we can be compassionate, we can be loving and non-judgmental, and when we do that we build a connection with people,” said Evanoff.
Tom Culver battled alcohol addiction for 20 years and has been sober for seven years.
“You’ve got to ask for help, too many people are trying to do this on their own” said Culver.
Now, he counsels those battling drug addiction at the Northpoint Recovery Center.
“Sooner or later, you just get sick and tired of being sick and tired, and I can tell you there is a way out. There is a life out there that is beyond imagination,” said Culver.
Boulder County offers information about substance abuse prevention and recovery assistance resources.
More information can be found on the Colorado Behavioral Health Administration’s Recovery Support Services page.
