Fentanyl pushing out meth and heroin as deadliest Tri-Cities drug

Fentanyl is edging out meth and heroin as the deadliest drug in Benton and Franklin counties.

The Benton County Coroner’s Office tracked 13 overdoses between January and April of this year, and eight were caused by fentanyl.

That compares to eight fentanyl deaths all year in 2019 in the county.

And Franklin County is seeing a similar spike in opioid-related overdoses with seven deaths this year from overdoses — three in the past month.

In all, there were five opioid deaths in Franklin County in 2019.

“There are some bad drugs coming through town right now,” said Franklin County Coroner Curtis McGary.

The synthetic opioid pain reliever fentanyl started making headlines as it caused more deadly overdoses.

The drug is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While people have been abusing fentanyl in the Tri-Cities for a few years, methamphetamine usually caused more deaths, while heroin was generally a more popular choice.

That started to change last year when the two counties saw 13 opioid-related deaths, including one infant. Most were caused by fentanyl.

While there are reports that the supply of illegal fentanyl has been slowed by the coronavirus pandemic, it’s had little effect on the number of deaths.

They’ve come at a steady clip since the beginning of the year, say coroner officials.

Deadly Combination

A 25-year-old Kennewick waitress was one of this year’s first fentanyl-related deaths after she was found dead in her Sixth Avenue home.

Blood tests determined she had a combination of the powerful opioid and methamphetamine in her system when she died, the Benton County Coroner’s Office said.

The combination is becoming more common as fentanyl becomes a larger problem in the Tri-Cities, said Dr. Brian Dawson with Ideal Option, an opioid treatment program with offices in Kennewick and Pasco.

The combination may mean people take a higher dose because the stimulant hides the side effects.

The trend has been seen statewide, according to the University of Washington.

An Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute report showed the number of deaths caused by a combination of opioids and meth rose from fewer than one person for every 200,000 people in 2012 to nearly 3 in 100,000 deaths in 2018.

Another reason the powerful opioid is more dangerous is that it often is used as a replacement for other drugs like oxycodone or heroin.

If someone has built up a tolerance to other drugs, they may end up taking more.

“A lot of people aren’t aware of what they’re taking,” Dawson said. “Some of the fake pills coming in from China are imprinted with the same labels as hydrocodone or oxycodone. ... It’s as addictive as heroin or other opioids and because of its high potency in some cases it can be more addictive.”

And an even more powerful alternative is also making its way into the Tri-Cities, both McGary and Dawson said.

Carfentanil, which is 100 times more potent than fentanyl is starting to show up in the area.

“It’s so potent that it really is only supposed to be used in animals,” Dawson said. “Even exposure to the powder can cause overdose.”

This story was originally published May 25, 2020 at 1:45 PM.