Surge in Oklahoma fentanyl overdose deaths include children

Steve Metzer

Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY — Authorities have seized enough illicit fentanyl in recent years to wipe out Oklahoma’s entire population multiple times over, and the state’s chief drug law enforcement officer said he can see no immediate reversal of an alarming increase in overdose deaths related to fentanyl.

Deaths linked to fentanyl and drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine and bootleg pain and anxiety medications laced with fentanyl have surged by more than 1,300% since 2019, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Director Donnie Anderson said.

Tragically, some victims have been children, including one who died in Tulsa before reaching his first birthday.

Anderson offered insights about fentanyl and drug trafficking as a contributor to i