HELENA — A large seizure of carfentanil or elephant tranquilizer in Billings earlier this month is raising concerns for Montana's health and safety.
"We see a lot of fentanyl, a lot of methamphetamines, but this is a new one," Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen says." "We have seen some very small amounts of carfentanil, which obviously sounds like fentanyl, but it is a lot more potent. We have never seen a shipment this big."
The Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area recently seized a large amount of dangerous drugs.
Knudsen says they were trafficked into Montana from out of state and that drugs originated from the Mexican cartels.
"Well, certainly, what we are learning is that the cartels are pivoting to different products," Knudsen says.
The State Crime Lab tested the drugs and found that 4,900 pills seized tested positive for carfentanil.
Seizures involving carfentanil typically result in one or two seized pills.
The carfentanil was in the form of blue M-30 pills and powder.
Additionally, a 5,000-pill seizure tested positive for fentanyl.
"This is extremely concerning because fentanyl alone is extremely deadly and dangerous," Knudsen says. "Carfentanil is a different formulation and is orders of magnitude more powerful and even more deadly."
Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid used to tranquilize elephants and is approximately 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine.
The effects of carfentanil, including overdose, can be reversed by the opioid overdose reversal drugs naloxone and naltrexone, though higher doses than usual may be necessary compared to other opioids.
Knudsen says, "If it did not come from a pill bottle with your name on it that came from your pharmacy, do not take it; you don't know where it came from."
If you or someone you know is struggling with drug addiction, you can access the resources below:
Community Crisis Center (406) 259-8800
Rimrock Foundation (406) 248-3175
Warmline | Mental Health America of Montana– Call 1-877-688-3377
Montana Crisis Recovery line – Behavioral Health Alliance of Montana– Call 1-877-503-0833
