HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Overdose deaths continue to increase across the nation and Central Texas is being impacted as well.

Multiple Hays CISD students have died from fentanyl related overdoses in the last year and that has caused many to open their eyes to this growing problem.

The Hays County Sheriff’s Office said it responded to 37 overdoses involving fentanyl in 2022. Those numbers are for their agency alone and don’t include other city jurisdictions in the county.

With the rising numbers HCSO has made it a point to educate anyone who will listen.

“We have gone to high schools here in Hays County, some middle schools, if the school let’s us in we are going to come,” said HCSO Deputy Anthony Hipolito.

Hipolito spent last week speaking with Westlake High School and has plans to speak with other districts soon.

Narcan can save a life if someone is experiencing an overdose, but Hipolito says some of the drugs they are seeing are packed full of fentanyl.

“What we are seeing is when people are overdosing or getting poisoned, one dose of Narcan is not doing the trick because this fentanyl is so powerful,” said Hipolito

Hipolito says fentanyl can be pressed into pills that might look like a Xanax or Percocet, but there are other concerns as well.

“In talking to the DEA and talking with them they have expressed that they have seen that to where the fentanyl is in these vapes,” said Hipolito ” So, if it is somewhere else in the country it is only a matter of time before it ends up here in Central Texas.”

Hipolito says they have not seen any cases related to liquid fentanyl in Hays County at this time.