There have been 74 confirmed overdose deaths in Butler County this year, matching 2016's total.

County Coroner William Young III's office reported the death total Wednesday afternoon. The trend follows a marked increase in drug-related deaths in the county in recent years:

13 in 2013

33 in 2014

47 in 2015

74 in 2016.

Young said he was not surprised that the threshold had been met, and with a month and a half left in the year, there are expected to be more than 74 overdose deaths in Butler County.

In addition to confirming the number of overdose deaths with the coroner's office on Wednesday, the Butler Eagle also obtained coroner's reports filed with the county Clerk of Courts that cover January through Oct. 2, 2017. Those reports list the victims' personal information as well as the place, cause and manner of death.

According to those records, the city of Butler is at the epicenter of the county's overdose death crisis. Thirty-five of the 70 deaths recorded with the county in 2017 listed Butler as the victim's place of death. Six of the 35 deaths in Butler were pronounced at Butler Memorial Hospital.

Butler Mayor Tom Donaldson said this is a problem affecting everyone, not just the city. He said the opioid problem is multifaceted and fighting the crisis is being done in several different ways — including education, arrests and rehabilitation.

“We need to fight it on every possible level,” he said. “At the end of the day, it is unfortunate that there is no quick fix, no magic wand. There is no one answer that will make everyone happy.”

Donaldson said the city police department has partnered with other community groups like neighborhood watches to increase awareness, and has increased the number of officers on foot patrol.

He said the department continues to work closely with the county's Drug Task Force, and has many officers serving roles in both organizations. The department also is working with the state Attorney General's Office and the Drug Enforcement Agency to build cases against suspected drug dealers.

Councilwoman Kathy Kline said when her tenure on city council is over in January she plans to continue her crusade against the opioid epidemic as a private citizen. Kline wants to create a neighborhood drug watch program, integrating aspects of a traditional crime watch with educational programs on topics related to the opioid epidemic.

“It's heart-wrenching,” she said of news that the county had met the OD death total from last year. “It is a very difficult epidemic to combat. We can no longer turn our heads away and pretend it isn't happening.”

Councilman Kenny Bonus said the burgeoning death rate is hitting home to many families — his included. Bonus said he recently lost a family member to the opioid epidemic.

“It's tough because it's happening everywhere, to every family,” he said.

Mayor-elect Ben Smith, who will take office in January, said he plans to continue programs that have been making headway into the crisis, as well increases to police work by “enabling them to have the tools that they need to go out and be able to make those arrests, those seizures.”

Continuing to work with other community organizations such as rehabilitation programs and keeping the lines of communication open is an important aspect of the fight, he said.

“I don't think there has been a tremendous amount of communication between the city and those programs,” he said. “We need to focus on helping recovery, as well as getting rid of the drug dealers.”

Rep. Brian Ellis, R-11th, who represents several municipalities in Butler County, said the Legislature is taking the crisis very seriously, with hundreds of legislative actions being developed.

“This is hands-down the biggest issue facing the lives of Pennsylvanians right now,” he said. “This is such a powerful topic that we are actually doing bills in the Health, Human Services and Judiciary committees, which are stacked with legislation.”

Rep. Jeff Pyle, R-60th, who represents parts of Armstrong, Indiana and Butler counties and sits on the House Judiciary Committee, said nearly 500 different concepts are being considered by the legislature, with “four or five new ones each week.”

“It doesn't matter if you are Republican or Democrat, this issue affects everyone,” he said. “It cuts across age, socio-economic status and education level.”

Some initiatives passed by the House and awaiting Senate action include the Consent to Treatment bill, which clarifies that a parent or legal guardian can provide consent, over the objection of a minor, to provide medical care or counseling related to diagnosis or treatment of substance abuse; the Drug and Alcohol Programs bill, which requires the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs to certify drug and alcohol recovery houses that receive public funding, the Opioid Abuse Prevention Education bill, which updates alcohol, chemical and tobacco abuse curricula to include opioid abuse prevention education, as well as legislation involving electronic prescriptions, the registration of pain management clinics with the Department of Health, and increasing the mandatory minimum sentences for certain drug offenders.

Pyle said the other bills being considered in the committees include a Narcan bill which would clarify how many applications of the opioid diversion drug can be administered before the addict is forced into treatment.