By Noah Johnson

njohnson@dailypress.net

ESCANABA – Escanaba Public Safety now offers free Narcan at its office 24/7.

Narcan is a nasal spray used to rapidly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.

The department received a self-dispensing box full of Narcan, donated by Face Addiction Now (FAN), formerly Families Against Narcotics, a non-profit group geared toward providing resources to individuals, families, and communities that substance use disorders have impacted.

Escanaba Public Safety Director John Gudwer, who is a part of the Delta County FAN chapter, said he got involved with the group to offer support and resources.

He said after a person is arrested for drug use, they need to have resources when they are discharged.

“They need to be held accountable for what they did, but when they get out, and they’re clean while they’re in jail, there’s nothing for them when they get out to help them support their recovery,” Gudwer said.

FAN recently visited several schools in the area, focusing on ninth through 12th grade, including Escanaba High School, Big Bay, Rapid River, Mid-Pen, Hannahville, the Student Success Center and Manistique High School.

Presenters shared visceral stories of their addiction and their eventual path toward recovery.

While FAN was in the area, a member brought a Narcan box for Escanaba Public Safety.

The box is in the front lobby of the public safety office, right next to the drug take-back box.

Gudwer said anybody is welcome to come and pick up a box. Gudwer said those picking up a box don’t have to speak to an officer or sign anything; they can just take it.

“Anybody can come here. It’s free of charge. That lobby door, that outer door, is open 24/7. They don’t have to talk to anybody. They can just open it up and grab what they need for Narcan,” he said.

He emphasized that Narcan is good to have on hand, even if you or your family members are not actively using drugs.

“Just because you have a grab a box of Narcan doesn’t mean you know somebody who’s on drugs or something like that. I have it in my truck. Just because, what if you run across somebody, you can’t hurt anybody with it. But if they’re passed out or maybe not breathing or breathing very shallow, there’s a chance that you can put it in their nose, and it might save their life,” Gudwer said.

The reality is that drug overdoses don’t discriminate, and it’s not uncommon for them to happen accidentally.

He said elderly folks may be on a prescribed opioid, but they may forget or have trouble remembering if they took their medication.

“Maybe they take an extra dose, not intentionally, like trying to overdose, but they accidentally overdose,” he said.

Narcan is essential for first responders and the public in general, as the prevalence of fentanyl is only getting worse.

“It isn’t a state away. No, it’s right here in Delta County in the city of Escanaba, in the U.P. as a whole, and in the State of Michigan as a whole. It’s everywhere,” Gudwer said.

Fentanyl comes in various forms, including pills that look very similar to legitimate prescription medicines.

Not only is fentanyl masquerading as another drug, it is extremely deadly. One example often used is the tip of a ballpoint pen; officials say the size of the tip of the pen is enough fentanyl to be lethal.

Gudwer reiterated the people making the drug are not certified chemists nor a pharmaceutical company, just every day people looking to make a buck.

“This isn’t some chemistry lab scientist’s doing. This isn’t a pharmaceutical company doing this; these are drug dealers,” he said.

Gudwer shared an analogy about chocolate chip cookies, saying that when baked, some will have more chocolate chips than others. One cookie may have eight or nine chips, while another only has three.

“We might get a pill out of the same batch; well, mine had one grain of fentanyl in it, and I’m fine. You know, I get my high. Yours has six in it; that’s deadly. Even though it came from the (same batch),” he said.

He added that the dealers don’t care if they kill someone because they won’t lose any business.

“If I overdose and die, there’s a hundred in line behind me to get it, unfortunately,” he said.

While Gudwer hopes the community will avoid illegal drugs altogether, he’s realistic and encourages those who may use Narcan to come by to grab a box.

In addition to Narcan, Escanaba Public Safety offers a service designed to help people find resources and treatment.

The Angel program is a service where an individual can visit public safety if they are in need of substance abuse help, and the department will facilitate transporting them to a treatment facility.

“It’s 100 percent voluntary. We don’t charge them anything. We just do a questionnaire with them, which stays in-house,” he said.

The questionnaire is there to give the department a better understanding of the issues people with an addiction face; it is not used to try to incriminate someone.

Officers won’t ask where the drugs came from, and individuals can even bring in their drugs to be disposed of.

“They can come in and say, “I want to enter the Angel program.” We’ll take the drugs from them and dispose of them. We won’t charge them criminally,” Gudwer said.

Even if the person is in the process of joining the program, they can choose not to go forward with it.

“They can even be in the process and say, “I change my mind. I don’t want to do this.” We’re not going to give the drugs back, but we’re not going to charge them,” he said.

Escanaba Public Safety is located at 1900 3rd Avenue North.