A Haines man was found unresponsive on the morning of Sept. 14 and later pronounced dead. Police say they suspect fentanyl was a contributing factor in the death.

Police received a call about an unresponsive male at Eagles Nest Apartments around 2 a.m., according to a release from Haines Police Department. The man was taken to the SEARHC clinic, where he was pronounced dead.

The person’s family has been notified, Haines Police Chief Heath Scott said. The police department said on Wednesday, Sept. 20 that the incident was still under investigation awaiting the state medical examiner’s report.

Scott said on Sept. 14 there was “evidence at the scene of fentanyl use” but said he couldn’t comment further at the time. All Haines Police officers carry Narcan, an overdose-reversing nasal spray, but Scott said he couldn’t say as of Thursday morning whether it was used at the scene.’

Scott said it was the first overdose death he was aware of in Haines since he arrived in 2016. In January of this year, two people in Skagway died of suspected fentanyl overdose. In June, a man suspected of carrying counterfeit drugs was arrested at the Haines Airport.

Fentanyl is the leading cause of death in the United States, according to the Department of Justice.

Fentanyl is a highly potent opioid that drug dealers dilute with cutting agents to make counterfeit prescription pills that appear to be Oxycodone, Percocet, Xanax, and other drugs. Fake prescription pills laced with fentanyl are usually shaped and colored to look like pills sold at pharmacies, the Department of Justice said.

In Haines, people can pick up narcan at SEARHC and at the Haines Volunteer Fire Department. Residents can also drop off narcotics at the medical center waiting room.

Scott said residents can submit information related to the death anonymously by calling the police department’s administrative office at 766-2121.

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