HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A fourth Hays County CISD student death has been linked to fentanyl overdose. All four deaths happened within about a month of each other.

The school board sent a letter to parents Wednesday night informing them an autopsy determined the July death of a 15 year old was due to a fentanyl overdose. Three other students died over the summer from suspected fentanyl overdoses.

On Thursday afternoon, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Kyle Police Department, and Hays County Sheriff’s Office held a joint press conference to “address the recent uptick in overdoses in Hays County.”

Hays CISD said it knows of at least two students who were administered Narcan by paramedics, first responders or school nursing staff in the last week. One suspected fentanyl poisoning was on campus, and the other was at a student’s home.

Every Hays CISD high school has been affected by a suspected fentanyl overdose death or serious overdose requiring Narcan, the letter said. Some of the middle schools have had students affected as well.

Response

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Kyle Police Department and the Hays County Sheriff’s Office will host a joint press conference to announce the latest efforts to address the recent uptick in overdoses in Hays County Thursday afternoon.

On Friday, Hays CISD will show local impact videos in class for middle and high schoolers. The videos will be posted on social media Thursday beforehand, so parents can decide if they want to opt their child out of viewing them. Opt-out forms are available online.

Hays CISD counselors have seen the video and will be available for students who want to talk about their experiences.

The video is available for viewing in English and Spanish, and more information is available on Hays CISD’s website.