During the breezy month of October, 2014, a Fairview Township man was found unresponsive in the bathroom of the St. Patrick Catholic Church. Drug paraphernalia was found at the scene, and upon further investigation it was found the man had overdosed on a “bad batch” of heroin. This man came from a loving family and had many friends, as well as a solid job working for his father’s business. Situations like this have a significant impact on many people from family and friends, to members of the community.  Thoughts arise regarding how people get into this situation and how the issue can be solved.

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“In 2010, the Erie County Coroner’s Office reported 25 drug-related deaths. By 2015, that number had more than doubled to 59, and by 2016, the number reached 95. Now, in 2017, the county has reached triple digits,” reported GoErie.com. There were 95 drug-related deaths in Erie County by the third week of August, matching the total number of drug related deaths from all of 2016. The number had hit 98 by August 29. The opioid and drug crisis in Erie County has been a severe issue for years, an issue whose solution seemingly falls further out of hand with each death. With two months remaining in 2017, Erie County has already surpassed drug-related death tolls from 2016 by over a dozen. “Despite the efforts of local officials, the number of drug-related deaths has risen even more rapidly in recent years.” the article continued. In an effort to slow the rate of drug deaths in the region, local officials have implemented programs, although the number of deaths continues to climb.

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The opioid crisis has forced a change in the way police and emergency responders work. “They are responding to overdoses, trying to find out where the drugs came from, educating their communities on the dangers of drugs and offering assistance to the users and their families,” according to GoErie.com. These all take time, effort and resources from officials who in recent years have introduced naloxone, medication designed to reverse an opioid overdose.

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According to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, naloxone has reversed over 1,000 overdoses in Pennsylvania alone as of June 2016. “Our main focus is to get the individuals help, to try and get them off drugs. We’re basically trying to save them with naloxone, and after that we’re trying to steer them to the right programs to try to curb their addictions,” said John Morell, Lawrence Park Township Police Chief.

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Last week, President Trump declared the opium epidemic a national public health emergency. “Nobody has seen anything like what is going on now,” Trump began. “As Americans we cannot allow this to continue.” In his speech on opioids, Trump stressed the need for further enforcement and discussed how his plans for the U.S.-Mexico border wall will help with the issue of illegal drugs coming into the U.S. "An astonishing 90 percent of the heroin in America comes from south of the border -- where we will be building a wall -- which will greatly help in this problem," he added. Trump also stressed the importance of cracking down on the Americans who purchase illegal drugs, explaining the need to link enforcement with stopping the abuse of drugs.

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Even with many resources being put into the drug crisis, and the introduction of naloxone, the death toll still continues to climb. At this rate, it may be difficult to completely diminish the death rate, an issue that may take Erie County years to overcome. Many community members agree on the importance of finding a solution to this issue, inducing justice for those who have fallen victim to the addiction that kills countless people per year.