DELTA, B.C. — Parents in Delta, B.C., have received an urgent notice after a student's drugs tested positive for fentanyl.
The joint message from the Delta School District and police department says the pills were bought illicitly and labelled as Xanax, although the pills are fake and are not the drug that is commonly prescribed for anxiety.
The notice says the school district is working with police while an investigation is underway.
It urges parents to talk to their children about the life-threatening risks associated with illicit drugs and asks them and students to report any suspicious activity in their neighbourhood or at school.
Parents and students are also asked to contact police about any information related to trafficking of illicit drugs.
School district spokeswoman Jen Hill says the pills were seized last month at a secondary school and test results this week showed they contain the potentially deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl.
The district wants to communicate the message that while curiosity may lead students to try drugs, the presence of fentanyl in many illicit substances means that is risky.
"We are in a new era of understanding when it comes to students and youth taking drugs," Hill said Friday, adding the school district will be sending nasal Narcan kits to all secondary schools next week so staff can use the antidote to reverse an overdose.
All schools in the district will have the kits in the new year.
Vancouver Coastal Health issued a text alert to drug users and health-care staff last month about fake Xanax being tested positive for fentanyl at Insite, the city's supervised injection site. It said fake Xanax tablets had been detected before in the illicit drug market in the Downtown Eastside.