Broken Arrow Sentinel launching special report on fentanyl’s deadly grip on Oklahoma

On Monday the Broken Arrow Sentinel will introduce a special report detailing the challenges that fentanyl trafficking is causing for Oklahoma families, first responders, educators and others.

The goal of this 7-article series is to help the public — especially teens — understand the risks of using illicit drugs, whether the drugs come from a street dealer, a friend at a party or through the Internet.

Four families who lost a child to fentanyl or fentanyl-laced drugs graciously agreed to share their personal stories with us in hopes of educating the public about fentanyl and the challenges of addiction, and hopefully help families to formulate strategies to prevent further loss of life.

“There are many issues facing Oklahomans that we could be writing about, but we chose to highlight the fentanyl crisis hitting our state because the drug is so deadly. The families affected by overdoses and deaths cut across every race, age and income,” said John Dobberstein, editor of the Broken Arrow Sentinel.

“When the Broken Arrow Police Department held a community forum earlier this year about fentanyl, the number of Narcan deployments, overdose deaths and personal grieving came as a shock to many. We felt the families who lost loved ones had important perspectives to share with the community and we are honored they agreed to engage with us.

“I would encourage as many people as possible read this special report so they will be more educated about the pull of addiction. They can learn to recognize the signs a loved one struggling with addiction and reach out for aid and support.”

Please check our website each day to read the articles, or go to our Facebook page.