Fatal fentanyl overdoses in Denver rose by nearly 25% in 2025 to the second-highest total in the past half decade, according to preliminary data from the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment.

Within the city, 346 people died last year from fatal fentanyl doses, up from 277 the year before, which is second to only 2023 in the number of fatal fentanyl overdoses this decade, according to the data.

The trend matched that of overall drug overdoses in the city, which rose from 483 in 2024 to 517 in 2025, or over 7% from 2024 to 2025, according to the data.

In addition to the listed numbers, there are 87 cases from the final few months of the year that are still pending the final cause and manner of death, the department said on its website.

March saw the highest number of fatal drug overdoses in Denver in the past three years, with 49 total deaths, 48 of which were from fentanyl, according to the data. The next closest month in that time frame was November of 2023, which saw 43 people fatally overdose on fentanyl.

With Denver’s fentanyl overdoses continuing to increase, the city is a hot spot for the drug amid a greater statewide downward trend, said U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge David Olesky.

“It appears, as a state in the aggregate, (fentanyl overdose) numbers have either leveled off or gone down, but there are still hot spots,” Olesky said, noting that the final 2025 state overdose numbers are still being finalized. “Denver looks like it will be a record year for overdose deaths … it’s projected to be in excess of 400 overdoses this year.”

Federal agents seized 76% more fentanyl pills last year than the year before in Colorado, which accounted for over 14% of the total number of pills agents seized in the U.S., the DEA said Wednesday.

Part of why Denver remains a hotspot, Olesky said, is that drug traffickers use the Interstate 25 corridor to drive them up from Mexico and into the Rocky Mountain region.

“In the pockets of the state where numbers have gone up, that just shows that we have more work to do,” Olesky said. “I would much rather be sitting here and be able to message with the public health side and the medical examiner and say overdose deaths are down dramatically just as much as our seizures go up.”

In addition to fentanyl, Denver methamphetamine overdoses also saw an increase in 2025, with 281 people fatally overdosing on the drug in comparison to 272 the year before, according to the preliminary data. The figure also ranks second in fatal methamphetamine overdoses this decade to 2023, which had 323.

In addition to the increase in fentanyl pill seizures, Colorado saw a 16% increase in methamphetamine seizures in 2025, the DEA said.