Shots Fired Outside Opelousas School Send It Into Lockdown

An Opelousas magnet school was sent into lockdown Thursday morning after shots were fired near its campus.

The Magnet Academy for Cultural Arts (MACA) went into lockdown after shots rang out somewhere in the neighborhoods near the school, close enough that the shots could be heard in the school. Although the threat had left the area, the school remained in lockdown, according to Opelousas police chief Martin McLendon.

"The school is in lockdown for safety reasons," McLendon told KPEL. "But there is no active threat against the school."

It's the latest in a series of threats that have impacted local schools. The Lafayette Parish School System has had to deal with multiple threats this week, including a Comeaux student who allegedly threatened to bring a gun to school.

There are no reported injuries at MACA or in the surrounding area at this time. It is not clear who or what the shots were being fired at.

Fighting Fentanyl: Huge Arrests Made Across Acadiana in 2022

The fight against fentanyl is a daunting one as the highly potent drug continues to take lives every day across the country. From Lafayette to the surrounding areas, law enforcement agencies have their hands full as they fight to get fentanly off their respective streets.

The awareness for the fatal causes of fentanyl are there as people across the Acadiana area (and the state) are not only mourning the death of loved ones lost to the substance but are holding memorials and recently worked with legislators to pass "Millie's Law," which increases criminal penalties for those who sale and distribute fentanyl.

Fentanyl has become a leading drug in an epidemic that takes over 100,000 lives each year, according to the CDC. The drug is often added to heroin without it being disclosed to the person buying the drug. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency outlines how dangerous fentanyl has become:

"Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 80-100 times stronger than morphine. Pharmaceutical fentanyl was developed for pain management treatment of cancer patients, applied in a patch on the skin. Because of its powerful opioid properties, Fentanyl is also diverted for abuse. Fentanyl is added to heroin to increase its potency, or be disguised as highly potent heroin. Many users believe that they are purchasing heroin and actually don’t know that they are purchasing fentanyl – which often results in overdose deaths. Clandestinely-produced fentanyl is primarily manufactured in Mexico."

Let's take a look back at headline-catching cases involving fentanyl in 2022.