The Fayetteville Police Department said they have seen an increase in drug overdoses from synthetic opioids in the past several months. Police are encouraging community members to carry Naloxone (Narcan). It is a nasal spray that will rapidly reverse an opioid overdose and restore breathing.
Fayetteville police are urging community members to carry Narcan due to a large number of opioid overdoses in the area.
The Fayetteville Police Department said they have seen an increase in drug overdoses from synthetic opioids in the past several months. Police are encouraging community members to carry Naloxone (Narcan). It is a nasal spray that will rapidly reverse an opioid overdose and restore breathing.
“Our immediate priority is preventing the additional loss of life. Synthetic opioids do not discriminate, and one exposure can be fatal,” said Fayetteville Police Department Major Shawn Strepay. “We ask everyone in our community to take this warning seriously and to call 911 immediately if an overdose is suspected.”
Police were called to a location on Saturday where three people were experiencing overdoses. Upon arrival, officers began lifesaving measures and called EMS. Two people died, and one person was taken to the hospital in serious condition.
People around Fayetteville agreed that carrying Narcan is a smart preventative measure while acknowledging the need for addiction resources.
“Even though Narcan is a very important preventative measure, I think there’s more things that could get to the root of the issue before that,” said Indie Luther, a Fayetteville resident.
“We urge friends and family members to have those difficult, but necessary, conversations with loved ones struggling with substance abuse. Warn them about this circulating danger and encourage them to seek help before it is too late,” Strepay said.
That message was echoed by another resident who works with Fayetteville Pride, which an organization supporting the city’s LGBTQ+ community and allies.
“Down here especially we have a lot of unhoused people,” said Krystal Maddox. “We do a lot of community activities and a lot of work in the community, so I know a lot of our members carry it.”
Where to find Naloxone (Narcan):
Naloxone is available for free from the Cumberland County Department of Public Health, located at 1235 Ramsey St.
Local pharmacies will offer Nalaxone without a prescription.
For more information on distribution, visit naloxonesave-nc.org
One hundred and seventy babies, kids and teens in North Carolina died after fentanyl exposure between 2015 and 2024, new state data shows.
Infants, children younger than 5 and teenagers aged 13 to 17 were the most likely to die after fentanyl exposure here during the past decade, according to updated data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
The data, focused on fentanyl-positive deaths between 2015 and 2024, was presented by the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to a committee of the state Child Fatality Task Force last week.
Fentanyl is extremely dangerous because its residue is easy to ingest, and drug paraphernalia like needles or spoon often contains enough fentanyl to kill a small child. In one toddler death cited by the medical examiner’s office, a 1-year-old was exposed to fentanyl left on a cotton ball next to the bed where the mother and child slept.
“Illicit fentanyl really is one of the substances that is predominantly toxic to the pediatric population,” Sandra Bishop-Freeman, chief toxicologist and forensic laboratory director at the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, told the Charlotte Observer.
Among teenagers, accidental ingestion often comes via other drugs — even borrowing what a teen thinks is a Tylenol from a classmate could lead to an overdose from a laced pill. In a case cited by the medical examiner’s office, a 16-year-old who died of fentanyl overdose took what they thought was Xanax at a party.
More 17-year-olds died than any other group among minors between 2015 and 2024, with 52 lives lost. Infants less than 6 months old had the second-highest death toll, with the total reaching 24.
Among racial groups, American Indian and Black residents experienced the highest number of pediatric fentanyl-positive deaths in the state, the data says.
And loss of life overall in North Carolina is much higher than a decade ago — growing from 243 deaths in 2015 to 1,954 in 2024.
Shown is a fatal dose of the synthetic opioid drug fentanyl. U.S. DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION
Despite pediatric dangers, deaths decline in recent years
There is some good news: Despite the number of fentanyl-related deaths remaining elevated compared to decades past, the rate has begun to slow over the past several years.
Fentanyl deaths among all age groups fell 26% statewide in October 2025 compared to the previous year, with deaths in Mecklenburg County down to 142 from 192.
Overdose deaths have been declining the past two years, CDC data released Wednesday shows. North Carolina’s fentanyl overdose rate among all age groups fell by more than 30% between August 2024 and 2025.
Increased access to preventatives, such as the overdose-reversing nasal spray naloxone, could be helping slow overdose death trends.
The overdose-reversing nasal spray naloxone, also known by its brand name Narcan, has become easier to access in recent years, federal data shows.
A multifaceted prevention strategy has likely helped contributed to the slowdown in overdose deaths in North Carolina, according to Kella Hatcher, executive director of the NC Child Fatality Task Force. Her group has been studying pediatric overdoses for several years.
“You have to keep working on a combination of efforts to make progress, and that’s the case with many [preventable] causes of death,” Hatcher said.
A 2025 Prevention Block Grant funded several primary prevention programs, including youth education efforts that served close to 9,000 during the year. Another program distributed more than 11,000 lock boxes and 15,000 medication disposal kits, according to Tuesday’s presentation.
Opioid settlement dollars are also funding prevention work in many North Carolina counties. The state is receiving $1.4 billion as part of national settlements with opioid companies, money aimed at bringing resources to communities harmed by the opioid epidemic.
The medical examiner’s office will continue to share data with state and county agencies focused on helping curb the preventable childhood deaths, toxicologist Bishop-Freeman said.
“Despite the trends possibly plateauing, these pediatric deaths are still too many,” Bishop-Freeman said.
DAVIDSON COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) — Naloxone, commonly known as Narcan, will soon be available at every middle school and high school in Davidson County.
The Board of Education unanimously voted yes for the policy on Monday. Davidson County School officials say the district will take about 30 days for training and implementation.
Naloxone will be available in all 17 middle schools and high schools in Davidson County. A Davidson County parent whose children graduated from the district and currently have four grandchildren in the schools said the measure could save lives.
“Our son … was murdered by fentanyl,” said Lorie Loomis, a Davidson County parent.
Loomis says they have been fighting for naloxone to be available in Davidson County Schools for over two years.
“It’s a victory for the parents in this county,” said Dana Loomis, Lorie Loomis’ husband.
For Dana and Lorie, this isn’t just about policy. It’s about protecting lives.
The naloxone will be provided by the Davidson Medical Ministries at no cost. According to Janise Hurely, the executive director, each school will get two boxes of naloxone.
“The county health assessment says one of the number one issues, and it has been this way for almost 20 years now, is substance use disorder,” Hurley said.
Dr. Greggory Slate, the superintendent of Davidson County Schools, says once implemented, naloxone could be found in schools’ medical kits.
Supplies, such as the medications naloxone and buprenorphine, carried by Buncombe County community paramedics on the post-overdose response team. Credit: Courtesy of Justin Hall
By Rachel Crumpler
A life lost in Buncombe County in 2022 still weighs on — and motivates — Shuchin Shukla, a family physician who specializes in addiction medicine.
A community paramedic had responded to an overdose involving a person recently released from jail. After reviving them, the paramedic told the patient about a soon-to-launch program that would start people on a medication used to treat opioid addiction after an overdose.
Soon after, the person used again, experienced a second overdose and went into cardiac arrest. They later died at the hospital.
“For the team working on this, the case hit home that every moment of every day matters for patients. At any minute, they’re at risk of dying or having an overdose,” Shukla said. “That’s how critical this is.”
For months, Shukla had been working with Buncombe County Emergency Medical Services to launch Buncombe Bridge to Care, a project to equip paramedics to administer buprenorphine — a medication proven to ease opioid withdrawal symptoms, reduce cravings and support long-term recovery for people with opioid use disorder —when responding to overdoses or others in the community struggling with addiction.
Delesha Carpenter’s personal tragedy has fueled her mission to combat opioid overdoses through increased naloxone access. Her new website with UNC maps naloxone availability across NC’s 100 counties.
Delesha Carpenter began her career as a researcher focused on pediatrics. A little over seven years ago, her path took an unexpected turn following the deaths of two close friends.
“A lot of people who get into this field, it’s personal,” Carpenter said. “I lost two friends within two weeks of each other to opioid overdoses. That really inspired me to increase access to naloxone.”
The researcher and professor with the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy recently launched NalxoneNearMe.org. The website features an interactive map of all 100 North Carolina counties, rating them based on the number of naloxone distribution services available.
Durham County is tied with Mecklenburg County as the highest rated counties on the map with a score of 88. Wake County wasn’t far behind with a score of 77.
Carpenter told WRAL the Naloxone Availability Scores are based on the level of availability of no-cost naloxone and pharmacies that sell naloxone in each county.
Naloxone distribution resources are categorized into 14 types, including syringe service programs, EMS, harm reduction organizations, health departments, pharmacies and healthcare providers.
“The highest score a county can receive is 100, which would mean that all 14 naloxone sources included in the Naloxone Availability Score are present in that county,” Carpenter explained. “If a county had one harm reduction program in the county, they would get the same amount of ‘credit’ toward the score as a county that had two or three reduction programs.”
Increased naloxone use and availability are among the efforts researchers say have contributed to a reduction in opioid overdose deaths in recent years.
“One thing is everybody’s life is worth saving. It is important to carry naloxone, especially if you’re going to be in situations where people are going to be using drugs, you never know what is in the drugs that you’re using,” Carpenter said.
Carpenter said increasing the availability of medications for opioid use, such as buprenorphine and methadone, would also help reduce overdose fatalities.
“Other resources that people should be aware of, and one that’s linked on our website, is Naloxone Saves. Ours tells you what types of sources are available, but you can go to the Naloxone Saves website and find the actual pharmacies that carry and stock naloxone, or find your health department and whether it’s distributing naloxone,” Carpenter added.
Naloxone will not harm someone who hasn’t taken an opioid, so it is recommended even when it is unclear what kind of drug a person has taken.
More than one dose may be needed because some opioids, like fentanyl, can take a stronger hold on the opioid receptors.
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – What started as a normal day for UNCW student Alex Bradford ended in tragedy, but his father’s mission to honor his memory comes at a time with encouraging statistics about North Carolina’s fight against the overdose crisis.
“I would say by far that was the worst day of my life,” said Jeremy Bradford, Alex’s father.
Alex died in 2023 from an overdose, a life full of promise that became part of a nationwide statistic.
Jeremy Bradford heard the words no parent is ever prepared to hear.
“Because of the distance between Spring Lake and Wilmington, we didn’t initially find out. We found out through social media. Somebody texted my wife and said, ‘Hey the police and ambulance are at the boys’ apartment complex. I think something’s wrong with Alex,” Bradford said.
Jeremy says his son was having a tough day and purchased what he thought was a Percocet pill, but it was actually straight fentanyl. That was two years ago.
Now in North Carolina, the state health department reports overdose deaths are trending down.
Each day in 2023, 12 North Carolinians died from drug overdoses. But in 2024, that number decreased to 8.
Locally, numbers presented to the Brunswick County Board of Commissioners in April showed emergency room visits from overdoses decreased from 110 in 2023 to 98 in 2024.
“For the first time in over 20 years of studying this, I actually am speechless,” said Nabarun Dasgupta, a street drug expert at UNC-Chapel Hill, when asked about drug trends moving forward.
He also says trends show that most overdose deaths are between Gen X and millennials.
“What you see with Gen Z is a really different substance use pattern that’s more Psilocybin, more marijuana, a little more ketamine and ecstasy. And so they have watched their parents and their grandparents’ generations struggle with opioids and have decided that’s not the drug of choice for that generation,” said Dasgupta.
Dasgupta says there are several reasons overdose deaths are declining.
“I think we can understand the decline in overdoses in three ways. One, the drug supply is changing. Number two, people’s behaviors are changing. And number three, the demographics of who is using opioids is also changing,” Dasgupta said.
And a common activity seen in college students and drug use is sharing pills. But he says this is also on the decline.
“We see a lot less of that sharing behavior now. And that’s kind of across the board, and the problem now is not really with the prescription opioid and pills,” said Dasgupta. “Most mortalities are coming from powdered substances.”
But Jeremy Bradford believes advocacy and awareness play a role in the decline, too.
That’s why he created the 2 Out Rally Foundation to educate and advocate for mental health and empower individuals impacted by illicit fentanyl use.
They host events and advertise at places like baseball games to help parents and kids educate themselves.
“It’s been very therapeutic for our mental health to put pain to purpose. And our purpose now is to tell Alex’s story and ensure no other parent has to go through this. I’m a member of a club I never wanted to be a part of. And I don’t like new members,” Bradford said.
Bradford hopes that the death of his son will help save the lives of others, and overdose deaths will continue to decline.
“So that when it gets tough, when it is the bottom of the ninth and there are two outs, you’re not out of the game,” said Jeremy Bradford. “There’s still plenty of life to live and to move on. And you don’t need to result to a negative action that could end up taking your life.”
BEAUFORT — It was standing room only as more than 50 people attended the forum about fentanyl Saturday at the Beaufort Train Depot. Those attending have witnessed the devastation fentanyl causes as local victim families introduced their loved ones and shared the many ways fentanyl causes death.
Barbara Walsh, executive director of the Fentanyl Victims Network of NC, who organized the gathering to honor those who lead the effort to stop fentanyl traffickers, said In many instances. Lethal fentanyl is ingested unknowingly. Fake prescription pills containing undisclosed fentanyl additives made to look like Adderall, Xanax, Percocet and Oxycontin are deadly.
“The victims did not know,” she said.
The pharmacy is the only safe dispenser of prescription medication. Recreational drugs also may contain undisclosed deadly fentanyl additives because it is a cheaper man-made ingredient.
Fentanyl is highly addictive. A person’s body can quickly become dependent on fentanyl. Local recovery and treatment resources are offered by Brooke Barnhill, manager of the Post Overdose Response Team (PORT) within the Carteret County Health Department.
Fentanyl has killed 18,959 North Carolina residents in 10 years, 2013-2023. Of those, 168 occurred in Carteret County.
Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina honored the #1 NC investigation and prosecution team by presenting them with the Save Lives Together award: Sheriff Asa Buck, District Attorney Scott Thomas, Prosecutorial District 4 (Carteret, Craven and Pamlico Counties), Assistant District Attorney Dave Spence, Carteret County and Legal Assistant (Paralegal) Michelle Gillikin, all of Carteret County.
Walsh said in the state, there are 37 NC Sheriffs who have no fentanyl investigation arrests leading to prosecution and four NC District Attorneys who have no prosecutions.
The removal of fentanyl traffickers who cause death requires teamwork. The Sheriff treats each death as a homicide investigation until proven otherwise. If the investigation leads to a prosecution, ADA Spence and LA Gillikin apply their extensive legal expertise to each case.
Walsh said victims and their families are treated with dignity and respect throughout the investigation and prosecution phases. This is unique to Carteret County.
“It should not matter where a person dies in NC to receive an investigation and justice, but it does,” she said
Walsh thanked Shannon Adams for serving as the local co-host of the event. Shannon’s brother, Ryan, thought he was dependent on Percocet, yet died in 2019 from undisclosed fentanyl additives in those pills.
Shawne Moran and Keenan, First Responder Therapy Dogs of Eastern North Carolina, were on hand to comfort the victim families and to discuss what they do to support recovery efforts in Carteret County.
More than 50 community members gathered at the Beaufort Train Depot Saturday to discuss the deadly impact of fentanyl in Carteret County. During the forum, Sheriff Asa Buck, District Attorney Scott Thomas, and other local officials received the Save Lives Together Award for their ongoing fight against fentanyl trafficking.
Families at the event shared personal stories about losing loved ones to fentanyl, highlighting the community’s urgent fight against the deadly drug.
One of those was Barbara Walsh who lost her Daughter to the deadly drug.
“It’s important for the families who lost a loved one to know that what their community is doing to keep someone else from dying,” said Walsh.
And In Carteret County alone, fentanyl overdoses have claimed 168 lives from 2013 through 2023.
According to Carteret County Sherriff Asa Buck a trend decreasing over the years.
“These cases are not different someone committed an act they provided a drug to someone caused them to lose their life and we investigate that just like a homicide and we prosecute those offenders just like we would if they would have killed somebody with a knife or a gun, ” said Sheriff Asa Buck
This past Saturday, a community forum addressing the impact of fentanyl in Carteret County was held at the Beaufort Train Depot. During the event, Sheriff Asa Buck, District Attorney Scott Thomas, Assistant District Attorney Dave Spence, and Legal Assistant Michelle Gillikin, all of Prosecutorial District 4, were honored with the Save Lives Together Award for their collaborative work in holding fentanyl traffickers accountable. Additionally, Brooke Barnhill, manager of the County’s Post Overdose Response Team (PORT), provided a Narcan (naloxone) demonstration and outlined local recovery resources.
Carteret County issued a news release from the event.
by Jaymie Baxley, North Carolina Health News April 14, 2025
By Jaymie Baxley
Naloxone is a widely available medication that can bring someone back from the brink of death in minutes, but cost, stigma and other barriers have kept the opioid overdose antidote out of reach for many of the North Carolinians who need it most.
In Wilson County, a new initiative aims to break down those barriers by giving residents free, 24/7 access to naloxone — no questions asked.
Repurposed newspaper dispensers filled with naloxone nasal spray were installed last month at five sites in the rural, eastern North Carolina county. These kiosks also contain information about recovery services for substance use disorder and testing strips that can be used to check illicit drugs for deadly substances such as fentanyl.
Jeff Hill, executive director of the coalition, said the goal of the kiosks is to “make sure that any person who needs a box of naloxone in Wilson County can access it at no charge.”
“Yes, over-the-counter Narcan is available, and yes, I can buy it at Walmart,” said Hill, referring to the brand name of naloxone. “But if I’m a person in early recovery who’s trying to help somebody, or I’m a person in active use or a family member of a person in active use with limited income, I might not have $50 to spend on that box of Narcan.”
Strategic placement
One of the kiosks was installed at BHG Wilson Professional Services, a center that provides medication-assisted treatment to residents recovering from opioid use disorder.
Amber Leclercq, program director for the center, said the kiosk was “strategically placed” on a side of the building that faces a row of tall bushes.
“With the vending machine being right there, it’s easy to access but also shaded enough to where other vehicles driving down the road don’t see,” she said. “If people are not yet ready to seek treatment or if they’re scared, this gives them the opportunity to discreetly obtain tools and information that might be life-changing. They’re taking the first step.”
The four other Wilson County kiosks are at county-owned facilities, including the local library, Health Department and Department of Social Services, and at Recovery Concepts Community Center, a coalition-run space that hosts meetings for addiction support groups.
Each kiosk was initially loaded with 25 boxes of naloxone and 100 testing strips. Hill said interest in the stations had surpassed the coalition’s expectations, with a couple of them needing to be restocked just days after they were installed on March 24.
“Our machine was one of the ones that got cleaned out pretty quickly,” said Lori Walston, director of communications for the Wilson County Department of Social Services. “We have a lot of foot traffic because of our agency and what we do. Also, the neighborhood where we sit is one of the neighborhoods of greater need in the community.”
Alisa Milliken, the department’s grants and wellness coordinator, said the agency also serves a number of residents experiencing homelessness — a population with an especially high risk of overdose.
“We have a lot of homeless people coming in on a daily basis needing food and things like that, so we expect that the Narcan will keep going pretty quickly, probably every time at our location,” she said.
Hill said the kiosks will be regularly replenished using funds from Wilson County’s share of a landmark court settlement with the pharmaceutical companies that allegedly fueled the national opioid epidemic. The county is set to receive a total of $7.8 million in annual payments through 2038.
Community education
Esteban Arizpe, a community paramedic with Wilson County EMS, said arming citizens with naloxone reduces strain on first responders.
“When someone calls 911 for an overdose and they’re actually administering the naloxone prior to EMS’ arrival, it greatly increases the chance of that person surviving while freeing up our units for other calls,” he said.
The kiosks not only provide easy access to naloxone, they also provide instructions on how to use it. Each station is equipped with a video player that gives a step-by-step tutorial for administering the drug.
“One thing that we strive for is to better ourselves and better our community by providing resources and giving them the education to know the signs and symptoms of an overdose, and how to treat it,” Arizpe said. “This is something that is helping us to meet that goal.”
Arizpe added that he’s seen a “great increase in knowledge” around naloxone and other tools such as syringe exchanges and testing strips — collectively known as harm reduction methods — among residents in recent years.
The increased awareness has coincided with a drop in emergency department visits. Admissions of overdose patients to the ER at Wilson Medical Center fell 36 percent from 2022 to 2025, according to DHHS data.
The grant used to buy and stock the kiosks came from the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program, a multi-year initiative managed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration.
In addition to paying for the five kiosks in Wilson County, the money allowed the coalition to buy four stations to place in nearby Edgecombe, Nash, Warren and Wayne counties. The total cost for the project was $10,000.
Carole Johnson, former administrator of the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, speaks during an event announcing a $2.9 million grant for the Wilson County Substance Prevention Coalition in September 2024.
The kiosk for Wayne County was presented to the local Health Department. Margaret Brake, the department’s director, said she will be meeting with community partners this month to determine where it should be placed.
“We like the idea that people will have 24-hour access to naloxone,” she said. “Particularly if it’s someone that’s homeless or struggling—they can get what they need when they need it. We’ve even talked about putting some canned goods in there, just to have some additional things the community can use.”
Mark Winstead, a pastor at Restoration Purpose Church in the small Nash County town of Bailey, is also trying to find a good site for his community’s kiosk. He described Bailey, which had a population of fewer than 600 people at the 2020 U.S. Census, as a place where “everybody knows everybody.”
“There’s still a stigma there,” Winstead said. “But if I can put something somewhere, and maybe it’s a well-known commissioner’s son who’s battling addiction and he can discreetly come get naloxone, then that’s what it’s all about.”
“You can’t treat somebody that’s dead,” he added. “We gotta be able to save their life first — and then we can work on the rest of it.”
