Border officials have intercepted a staggering amount of fentanyl in the past three months, enough to kill the U.S. population five times over, according to a top border official who spoke at a Congressional hearing on border security.
As outlined by Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) during a Congressional hearing this week, the Department of Homeland Security figures indicate that approximately 9,400 pounds of the synthetic drug have been seized at the border, with 7,200 pounds of that total intercepted at the U.S.-Mexico border.
This quantity of fentanyl is reportedly enough to kill 1.6 billion people, equivalent to every American five times over, according to Burchett's comparison with the 2021 census, which recorded a population of 332 million Americans. Testifying before Congress, Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent John Modlin added that the 700 pounds of fentanyl found last year in his city alone would have been enough to kill half of the U.S. population.
According to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Most of the fentanyl is being produced by Mexican drug cartels and consequently smuggled into the U.S. through the southern border, often in vehicles driven by American citizens. The DEA has also reported smaller amounts of the drug arriving from China by air.
In 2021, the DEA seized over 50 million fentanyl pills and more than 10,000 pounds of the drug in powdered form, enough to kill every American. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, synthetic opiate was responsible for approximately 70,000 deaths per month in 2022.
Representative Gary Palmer (R-AL) noted that fentanyl is just like a 'weapon' coming across the border to kill Americans.
"Fentanyl is a weapon that is coming across our borders that's killing young people at a record level,' he said at the hearing. "The drug overdose death rate for people under age 24 is at an all-time high, especially among the African American community. I have a real hard time understanding why we continue to operate the way that we operate.'
The figures place even more pressure on the Biden administration to address the humanitarian crisis across the U.S.-Mexico border as swarms of illegal migrants continue to demand entry into the country. Over two million people were detained by border officials last year, an all-time record.
