<p>Over 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses during the 12 months that followed 2020’s COVID-19 lockdowns.</p> <p>That’s the equivalent of someone dying every 5 minutes.</p> <p>The CDC says it’s by far the most overdose deaths ever recorded in a one-year span.</p> <p>Health experts calling the pandemic a tragic trigger, with isolation and job loss taking a serious emotional toll on people across the country.</p> <p>“It was the perfect storm," said Wendy Bank.</p> <p>Wendy Bank says her son, A.J., was furloughed from his job at Chili’s as the restaurant reduced its staff during the lockdown.</p> <p>With pressure from mounting bills already on his plate, the 23-year-old Aurora native severely injured his ankle not long after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted.</p> <p>“he started having anxiety and depression," said Wendy Bank. "He was on Xanax, Valium, Adderal.”</p> <p>Soon, the Marmion Academy grad stopped taking prescription painkillers and started self-medicating with a street version of Ketamine, a drug normally used as an anesthetic.</p> <p>Last year, on October 1st, Bank purchased some Ketamine from a friend.</p> <p>He was found dead in his home the next day.</p> <p>“it was laced with Fentanyl and killed him immediately," said Wendy Bank.</p> <p>Fentanyl, a drug 50 times more powerful than Heroin, was originally developed to help treat painful conditions like cancer.</p> <p>Now, it’s quickly becoming the biggest driver of drug overdoses.</p> <p>“There’s no quality control so you don’t know what’s in that pill," said Luis Agostino, a representative of the Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA.</p> <p>“The only pills or medication that you should be taking is what prescribed by your doctor and dispensed by a registered pharmacy," said Agostino.</p> <p>“Our country’s in danger, along with our kids," said Wendy Bank. "It’s killing an entire generation, the government has to do something.”</p> <p>The Federal government is putting 30 million dollars towards expanding the use of Fentanyl test strips to help detect the presence of the deadly drug and increasing the availability of Naloxone, an opioid overdose antidote.</p> <p>They’re also working to establish more syringe-exchange programs, a move the CDC believes could help more drug users seek treatment.</p> <p>Wendy Bank says she’s going to continue spreading awareness about the dangers of drug abuse, in honor of A.J.</p> <p>“A.J.’s with me right here, so I carry him everywhere I go," said Wendy Bank."Whether I speak to someone on the street or in the store, he’s giving me the strength and God’s giving me the strength to do this. I know he would want me out there raising awareness, so if there’s just one person that can be saved from this then he didn’t die in vain.”</p>