MDI Drug Problems Prompt Bar Harbor Councilor to Make Plea
Bar Harbor sees 40% jump in overdose-related calls
BAR HARBOR—Last night at the Bar Harbor Town Council meeting, Councilor Kyle Shank used his councilor comments time to make a plea. It was a plea for people to take care of themselves and for the community to take care of its people. It was a plea about drugs and kindness and need.
Twenty-two people died of overdoses in Hancock County in 2023. Two of those deaths came in December. Also in December, Hancock County 15 people had nonfatal drug overdoses with EMS response.
Just about a year ago, a bartender in Bar Harbor saved a life because they’d been trained to use NARCAN by Bar Harbor Deputy Fire Chief John Lennon, but that’s not all that Shank was talking about when he plead for the community to take care of itself and each other during the February 6 comments at the end of the Town Council meeting.
“Like many of us,” Shank said. “I have had loved ones who have had their troubles with drugs–some of whom have recovered, some who are no longer with us. My goal this evening is not to moralize, nor am I going to pass judgement.”
Instead, he shared data, resources, and an entreaty.
“Remember that people here care about you and are here for you if you need them,” he said.
Shank’s plea comes after the arrest of six people in Hancock County for various drug offenses. The arrests followed a three-month investigation into the suspected distribution of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine occurring from residences located at 1261 Main Street in Mount Desert and 6 Kylie’s Way in Ellsworth. His plea also comes after multiple overdoses in Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island.
The comments also come after Healthy Acadia released an image about a bad batch of cocaine on Mount Desert Island that contained fentanyl.
“In 2023, we saw a 40% jump in overdose-related calls to the Bar Harbor Police Department and EMS and since 2020, more than half of all recorded overdose related issues have involved fentanyl. While it is true that there are no safe drugs. The prevalence of fentanyl, both purposeful and none, makes them all the deadlier. While our local law enforcement does an incredible job at trying to keep these contaminated drugs off the street—as shown by the recent arrests of a small drug ring operating across our greater island communities—their work is not getting any easier,” Shank said.
Hancock County EMS responded to 255 non-fatal drug overdoses between January and December of 2023 according to data from the “Maine Monthly Overdose Report.”
In October, CNN said drug overdoses killed more than 112,000 people between May 2022 and May 2023 in the country.
Back in May 2022, Fosters Daily Democrat reported,
“A potentially deadly mix of fentanyl laced drugs appears to be circulating in the region and may be responsible for a spike in overdose deaths, prompting recovery groups to urge caution.
“The email, sent last week to the Strafford County Public Heath Network in New Hampshire, cited 27 deaths reported in Maine for the week ending March 13. By now, experts say, there may be more.”
Local people worry that a new wave of tainted drugs is causing multiple overdose deaths.
A September 2023 Maine Public article originally written by Scott Maucione of 88.1 FM Baltimore says,
“The mixture of stimulants like cocaine and meth with highly potent synthetic opioids is a fast-growing driver of fatal overdoses in the U.S.
“Since 2010, overdoses involving both stimulants and fentanyl have increased 50-fold, and now account for 32% of U.S. overdoses in 2021 and nearly 35,000 deaths, according to a study published Thursday in the scientific journal Addiction.”
Narcan is used only for opioid overdoses and does not reverse the effects of overdoses for other drugs or alcohol. When people overdose, the toxic amount of the drug overwhelms the body. Opioids attach to brain receptors that tell humans to breathe. When that attachment occurs, breathing can slow or stop. The person becomes oxygen starved which can cause unconsciousness, coma, and death.
Shank said, “Per the CDC, deaths due to drug overdose have soared since 2020: from an already devastating 65,000 a year to a new 2023 estimate of 112,000 people. While the data from the Maine Drug Data shows that overdoses, both fatal and none, have declined year-on-year from 2023 to 2022, that state-level averages might be disguising some more local impacts. Funding for the Downeast Drug Task Force has been removed from the Hancock County budget for this upcoming year.”
That county budget runs on the calendar year, starting in January, not the fiscal year.
“And while the new state budget has funds in it for over 100 new beds in substance abuse treatment units, it may be some time before these resources become available,” Shank said. “So I return to my ask: remember that people are here for you and please, please, be careful.”
Back on April 28, 2023, at approximately 7:30 p.m., police officers responded to a local business to assist the fire department with a reported drug overdose. According to the police department, Narcan was administered and the person was transported to the hospital.
On the same evening, at approximately 11:00 p.m., police officers responded to a local business to assist the fire department with a reported drug overdose. According to the police department, NARCAN was administered and the person was transported to the hospital. Those were just two of the times Narcan has been used in the town last year.
Naloxone (Narcan) is a life-saving medication that can reverse an overdose from opioids—including heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid medications—when given in time. Naloxone is easy to use and small to carry. There are two forms of naloxone that anyone can use without medical training or authorization: prefilled nasal spray and injectable.
According to Lennon, “Naloxone can be given to a person who is experiencing an overdose and sometimes it can reverse the symptoms temporarily. Naloxone is an opioid antagonist. Once administered, it goes into the brain and forces the opioid off the receptors in the brain.
“Think of it as being like a game of musical chairs. The opioids come into the brain and see the empty chairs. They pull up a seat and get comfortable. When Naloxone is administered, it comes in and wants the chair more than the opioid. It pushes them out and sits down, keeping the opioid from sitting back down in the chair again.
“After a while the Naloxone gets bored, gets up and wanders off. The opioids are bitter because they were forced out of their chair. They hurry right back in and sit back down. That is why it is possible for someone to overdose a second time without additional use and why it is so important to call 911.”
Because of that reaction and the possibility of recovery, Lennon has been going throughout Mount Desert Island training people with Narcan, distributing it, and also responding to calls himself.
Bar Harbor Fire Chief Matt Bartlett said that Lennon’s efforts have been massive and have made a difference. He’s created a community of regular people who can respond before the first responders and save other people’s lives.
“It’s a big deal,” Bartlett said on a phone call last week. His deputy chief, he said, has done an amazing job.
Maine law requires on-duty law enforcement to carry Narcan.
Naloxone quickly reverses an overdose by blocking the effects of opioids. It can restore normal breathing within 2 to 3 minutes in a person whose breath has slowed, or even stopped, as a result of opioid overdose. More than one dose of naloxone may be required when stronger opioids like fentanyl are involved.
Naloxone won’t harm someone if they’re overdosing on drugs other than opioids, so it’s always best to use it if there’s even a possibility that someone might be overdosing.
After the dose, people are advised to stay with person until emergency help arrives or for at least four hours to make sure the person’s breathing returns to normal. The goal is to help before that overdose happens.
“If you are struggling with drug use, It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old; it doesn’t matter if you work in the service industry or a nine-to-five; it doesn’t matter if you’re trying something for the first time or have a years-long habit: there are organizations here that can help,” Shank said. “If you’d like to speak with someone, please use the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrations hotline: 1-800-662-4357. If you’re comfortable working with someone locally, please look into the many programs that Healthy Acadia is spearheading in our area or consider visiting the MDI Behavioral Health Clinic right here in town. If you reach out, there will be someone to help. Thank you.”
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
To learn more about the law, click here: https://www.mainepublic.org/health/2024-01-02/new-maine-law-requires-on-duty-law-enforcement-to-carry-narcan
Downeast Partnerships for Success
Downeast Substance Prevention Coalition
Down East Recovery Supports Guide
Maine Alliance for Recovery Coaching (Maine-ARC)