BOZEMAN — Six people nearly died of fentanyl overdoses in Butte last weekend. I spoke with Captain Nathan Kamerman, commander of the Missouri River Drug Task Force to see if the dangerous drug had crossed over Homestake Pass and into the Gallatin Valley.
"Has not hit Bozeman nearly as hard as it did Butte on this particular wave. However, often if there's a hot wave or hot load of dope coming in anywhere in our state, especially from the west, Butte area, they usually hit us a day or so later," Kamerman says.
However, Kamerman does say there is an increase: "Our population continues to grow here, and so do our fentanyl numbers."
How does this lethal drug cross into the Treasure State?
"So most of what we're seeing is actually coming from the southern border, up through our west coast, and then works its way over. From there, some does come from other portions of our country, but most of it's coming into Montana from the west on I-90," Kamerman says.
And like many trends, drug popularity ebbs and flows.
"Heroin went from 21 overdoses in 2018 that resulted in death to five in 2023. Whereas fentanyl went from eight in 2018 to 93 in 2023," Kamerman says.
Kamerman says there is a need for public awareness and education.
"I think it is of note that with the introduction of Narcan and increased education on recognizing overdose symptoms and how to use Narcan, that we've seen kind of either holding level or even decrease a little bit in, in overdose death," Kamerman says.
