Arizona police chief: Fentanyl crisis at the border a 'pandemic'
Nogales Police Chief Roy Bermudez on the fentanyl epidemic facing his border county from drugs trafficked across the southern border.
An Arizona police chief said there is currently "no border" as illegal immigrants and drugs continue to flood into his community.
Nogales Police Chief Roy Bermudez joined "America's Newsroom" Tuesday to address the surge of fentanyl smuggling that has created a "pandemic" and the operations in his town to stop the drugs from endangering the lives of his citizens.
"The technology that Customs and Border Protection have at the border is far-reaching, more than the innovation that these cartels have. But we're still trying to mitigate this as we go forward," he told Bill Hemmer.
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Rep. Mayra Flores, R-Texas, says the "status quo" at the southern border "cannot stand" as the freshman congresswoman is introducing her first piece of legislation aimed at establishing operation hubs along the border.
"My first bill, the Advanced Border Coordination Act, delivers on what I came to Washington for: to solve problems impacting my constituents and district," Flores said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "The status quo regarding border security cannot stand."
"Regardless of what this Administration says, our borders are not secure—this bill would fix this and ensure law enforcement agencies work closely together to stop illegal immigration," she said.
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Heroin/fentanyl packages seized by DEA agents. (DEA)
Bermudez said the increase of fentanyl has created a "pandemic" as overdoses are on the rise.
As a result, his officers have to always carry Narcan, a drug used to reverse the effects of an overdose. Bermudez said he never thought he would see the drug problem reach this level.
"I've been in this business for 38 years. I never thought that I was ever going to see this day, that our officers were going to be saving lives of the people that were overdosing."
Fox News' Adam Shaw and Houston Keene contributed to this report
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