The Santa Rosa Police Department held a high school town hall on Thursday after three teens died of an overdose last month. The meeting held at Montgomery High School hit close to home for some, as one of the victims attended the school. A memorial has since been placed for the teen who died of suspected fentanyl poisoning. “These matters are matters of life or death. Parents really need to educate themselves,” said Patricia Seffens of the SRPD. Santa rosa Feb 26 Suspect in Santa Rosa teen overdoses back in court Santa rosa Feb 25 Arraignment postponed for man linked to Santa Rosa teen overdose deaths Santa rosa Feb 24 2 teens dead, 2 hospitalized from suspected fentanyl overdose in Santa Rosa A 16-year-old girl who attended Santa Rosa High School and her 18-year-old boyfriend who attended Montgomery High, were both found unresponsive on Feb 22. Two other teen girls, 14 and 16-years-old respectively, also overdosed the same day but survived. Three days before that incident, Karl Kachigan’s son overdosed. The Santa Rosa resident said he believed fentanyl was the cause. “When we were kids, the stuff that was out there wasn’t that deadly,” he said. A suspected dealer has since been arrested, but police said getting parents involved is vital to preventing future deaths. Narcotics detectives showed how they’ve found fentanyl-laced in every street drug, from marijuana to cocaine and counterfeit pills. “It’s the equivalent of a few grains of salt, so just two milligrams of Fentanyl can be a potentially lethal dose,” Seffens said. Kachigan said he wished he knew more about fentanyl and what to look for sooner. He added he hopes parents get involved. “I think the key with kids these days is you need to look for the red flags because anything you can do to prevent something. I mean they certainly understand Fentanyl is deadly, but they’re very trusting,” Kachigan said. Kim Simack, who lost her son to a fentanyl overdose more than a decade ago, shared her experience and urged parents to be vigilant. “I wanted to come and say thank you to you guys, because sometimes you think it can’t happen here. It can. It does,” she said. The SRPD plans to host three more town halls later this month. ...read more read less