OPD Targets Drug ODs at Narcan Workshop

Olney Police Host Community Narcan Training to Fight Fentanyl Overdoses The Olney Police Department held a life-saving seminar last Thursday at the Olney Civic Center, providing local residents and businesses with free training on how to use Narcan, a medication that can reverse the effects of a fentanyl overdose.

The seminar, organized by Police Chief Dan Birbeck and the Central Plains Center, drew a wide cross-section of the Olney community, including business owners, church groups, private citizens, and city officials. Chief Birbeck said the event was well attended, with the 11 a.m. session drawing a larger crowd than the noon session.

“All walks came,” Chief Birbeck said. “It’s something that’s impacting communities everywhere, and I think people are starting to realize how important it is to be prepared.”

The OPD led the seminar in partnership with Rhonda Uptergrove, a representative from the Central Plains Center based in Plainview. Ms. Uptergrove serves as the Region 2 coordinator for overdose prevention training and naloxone distribution. She contacted the OPD to offer free training and Narcan kits to the public.

“We just facilitated it,” Birbeck said. “They provided the training and the Narcan.”

The event coincided with an ongoing fentanyl awareness campaign being run by Channel 3 KFDX News in Wichita Falls, which Chief Birbeck believes contributed to the strong turnout. He also credited growing awareness nationwide about the dangers of fentanyl.

“There’s an abundance of awareness now,” he said. “The nightly news is continually pushing that message. You’re starting to see vending machines in some places that give out Narcan for free.”

Narcan, also known by its generic name naloxone, can rapidly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, including fentanyl. Chief Birbeck said the medication is safe to use even if someone is not experiencing an overdose.

“If somebody goes unconscious, it’s not gonna hurt to hit them with Narcan,” he said. “On the off chance it is an overdose, it’s better to use it than let them die.”

Each kit distributed at the seminar contained two doses of Narcan in nasal spray form. Olney police officers and first responders carry in their patrol vehicles in injectable and spray form, he said.

Although Olney is a small town, Birbeck said fentanyl has affected the area.

“Yes, there’s fentanyl here,” he said. “It’s not thousands of pills, but it’s being cut into other drugs — sometimes laced into marijuana or smoked. There are a plethora of ways to introduce it to the body.”

Chief Birbeck said he hopes to offer similar training sessions quarterly, including CPR and Narcan trainings, to continue providing life-saving resources to the community.