Content Warning: The following article contains descriptions of excessive and deadly drug usage — specifically fentanyl and heroin.
From five deaths in 2019 to 65 deaths in 2022, the number of fentanyl-related deaths has steadily climbed in Santa Cruz County since 2020. The County’s fentanyl overdoses will likely reach a three-year monthly high in May 2024, a phenomenon known as the “fentanyl crisis.”
The fentanyl crisis has eclipsed the heroin epidemic in severity. First developed in 1959 as an intravenous anesthetic, fentanyl is reportedly 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. It is considered more dangerous and deadly than heroin due to its easy access and cheap production cost.
“The heroin epidemic looks like a walk in the park compared to fentanyl,” said Mia Evje, who has been houseless in Santa Cruz for eight years and has witnessed the effects of both epidemics firsthand. “There were people that overdosed from heroin back in the day, but nowhere near the amount that have since fentanyl.”
From students to the houseless population, this crisis has impacted many members of the Santa Cruz community.
Brent Adams, director of the Warming Center, holds “Warming Wednesdays,” where he distributes materials to houseless people during the winter. He has worked as a local advocate for the houseless population for over 10 years and has seen the change in drug use first-hand.
“Before 2017, we would always have a memorial when one of our people died because it was a big deal — then, it was four people a month, and then there were twenty in the summer,” Adams said. “We kept hearing ‘Oh it’s fentanyl,’ but I didn’t really track it until 2019 […] and 2020, where I was constantly running out [to the camp near the distribution center] administering Narcan.”
According to Adams, fentanyl has become much cheaper and more accessible in recent years, leading to its spike in use and replacement of other drugs like methamphetamines or heroin. Stix, who is houseless, said he knows many friends who died from a fentanyl overdose in the last year.
“Six years ago there weren’t so many people that were visibly on the street just going through […] life in the worst way possible,” Stix said. “[Fentanyl is] so easily accessible […] you only have to scrape up a couple of bucks for one hit.”
Drugs can be laced, or adulterated, with fatal amounts of fentanyl. Its high potency and low cost enable drug dealers to add fentanyl to other drugs, such as Xanax, for more profit. If someone is not aware the drug they consumed has been adulterated, they could experience fentanyl poisoning and overdose.
Amber Parker, a UC Santa Cruz alum who has worked at the Student Health Outreach and Promotion (SHOP) Program since 2015, helps supply students with Narcan nasal sprays and fentanyl testing strips to facilitate a safer campus environment. 
UCSC Student Health Outreach and Promotion Program (SHOP) offers a number of resources and support for students, providing a safe, non-judgmental environment for students to learn about their wellness needs. Following a training video and short quiz (provided through UCSC website), UCSC students can stop by SHOP to pick up free Narcan and Fentanyl Testing Strips (FTS) (quantities limited to two per person).
“We’re not here to police, we’re not here to enforce policy; we’re here to help educate and equip folks with tools to help them have a safer time,” Parker said. “Fentanyl poisoning has not been a common issue with our student body […] But I also know that people have been coming in more to get testing supplies and Narcan, which is a fantastic thing.”
Janus of Santa Cruz is a local substance use disorder treatment center. CEO Amber Williams sees the effects drug use has on different communities from her travels to different treatment centers around the country.
“The whole coastal California is concentrated [with fentanyl use],” Williams said. “The problem isn’t just here in Santa Cruz.”
Williams feels that substance misuse needs to be destigmatized and the first step toward that goal is dismantling harmful language surrounding it.
“Even in youth, they don’t know what they’re taking […] they may be smoking weed or deciding to take a pill at a party and it’s laced and they end up dying as a result,” Williams said. “I like to call it poisoning instead of overdose so we can start to change the language and shift how we approach care and stigma.”
The Janus Center provides a number of programs including detoxification, residential treatment, counseling services, and sober housing. Pictured is a list of services that indicate the status of the exam room.
There were 131 recorded fentanyl-related deaths in Santa Cruz from 2019 to 2022. With the numbers consistently rising each year, advocates from Janus, SHOP, and the Warming Center alike agree that fentanyl use needs to be addressed with greater efficiency. Local groups remain resilient by implementing combative measures, educating the community, and advocating for harm-reduction resources.
