BEAUMONT, Texas — A town hall was hosted in Beaumont Thursday to discuss topics of drug recovery and addiction.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Council of Deep East Texas, representatives from the US District Attorney's Office and Drug Enforcement Administration agents met at the Dream Center in Beaumont.
Officials say fentanyl overdoses are a growing problem in Southeast Texas.
A small amount of fentanyl, as little as a grain of sugar, is all it takes to kill.
"A packet of sugar at a table restaurant. You take one little grain of that, that is fentanyl that's enough to kill you," said First assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Texas, Matt Quinn.
"One Pill Can Kill" is the message the council uses to educate the public about the deadly effects of fentanyl.
"There are a lot of counterfeit pill presses in Houston, where drug dealers are manufacturing these fake pills laced with fentanyl and distributing those into Southeast Texas," Quinn said.
Spotting the drug can be tricky and manufacturers are getting more creative.
They can come in different shaped pills, powder or even look like candy.
A buyer may think they only getting Adderall, Xanax, Vicodin off the streets, but in reality, it's much worse.
Quinn stresses the importance of parents having the conversation about the dangers of fentanyl to their kids.
"It's time to stop being friends to our kids and be parents and have these hard conversations with them, no matter who you are," Quinn said.
Quinn says they're seeing 1,000 overdose calls a year or every two years.
This alarming data is what officials hope the fight against fentanyl will decrease.
"We've become aware of the threat of fentanyl and how dangerous it is and so what we're wanting to do is educate the public on how fentanyl is getting into our communities into our areas," said Alcohol and drug Abuse Council of Deep East Texas Prevention Manager, Melanie Patterson.
Officials are currently trying to bring overdose tracking to Southeast Texas to collect more specific data.
For resources on drug abuse prevention, intervention, treatment and support, click here.