Law enforcement officials in one of the New Jersey counties hardest hit by the opioid epidemic will now have access to funding and intelligence from state and federal agencies, including the DEA, to fight drug trafficking. 

Ocean County was among 16 other counties across 13 states to enter the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program, also known as HIDTA. The program was created by Congress in 1988 to provide assistance to federal, state, county and local law enforcement agencies in areas identified as "critical drug-trafficking regions" in the United States.

When Monmouth County was included into HIDTA in 2016, it allowed for the county's prosecutor's office to get $125,000 in federal funding to help lead a law enforcement team made up of county officers, the DEA and the FBI. The team focused on opioid-related investigations and public outreach. 

"This gives us a seat at the table with all the big players," said Al Della Fave, a spokesman for the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office. "(HIDTA) gives us access intelligence networks operating throughout the state and beyond."

Ocean County continues to have one of the highest number of overdose-related deaths in New Jersey. In 2015, the county had the second-highest heroin-related deaths in the state, at 157. Things weren't much better in 2016. The county had more than 200 overdose-related deaths that year.

'The opioid epidemic that is occurring here in our backyard is not a problem that can be addressed by a single agency--it will take cooperation throughout all levels of law enforcement'  
                        --U.S. Rep. Chris Smith

"The opioid epidemic plaguing our nation continues to tear families and communities apart across Ocean County and our entire state," Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ, said in a statement. "The key to finding a long-term solution to the opioid crisis is to implement an all-hands-on-deck approach that includes law enforcement, medical professionals, and treatment providers. This designation will do just that by increasing coordination among all levels of government and providing Ocean County access to critical federal resources."

Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph Coronato, whose office has been working towards getting a HIDTA designation since 2013, said this is a "game changer."

"We have long sought the help of this federal drug prevention program to bolster our ability to make a substantial impact in our fight to close Ocean County borders to drug dealers," he said.

All 1,901 people killed by opioids in N.J. last year, mapped

Data obtained by NJ Advance Media shows the death toll from opioids in 2016 exceeds the population of more than 70 N.J. towns.

U.S. Rep. Tom MacArthur who co-chairs the Bipartisan Heroin Task Force in Congress, said Ocean County has been "devastated by drug addiction" and that the assistance from HIDTA will help law enforcement "save loved ones."

"Our local law enforcement officials are on the front lines of this fight and need help to get dealers off our streets and stop drugs from flowing into our communities," McArthur, R-Ocean, said in a statement. "This designation is critical for Ocean County and will ensure our police officers have the assistance and resources they need."

There are currently 28 areas that have a HIDTA designation across the country and in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

"Drug trafficking is a national problem that has to be addressed on the local level, and adding these counties to the HIDTA program is a critical part of this effort," said Richard Baum, acting director of National Drug Control Policy.

Baum said that 16 counties across 13 states were recently added to the HIDTA network, including Montgomery County in Pennsylvania and Oneida County in New York.

"Ocean County is the epicenter of a growing opioid epidemic gripping our state, and sweeping across the country," Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, said in a statement. "Being part of the New York/New Jersey HIDTA provides Ocean County with yet another tool in the ongoing battle against opioids, including access to federal resources to help stem the tide and save lives from the perils of heroin and prescription opioid overdose."

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-Ocean, said this designation is a "critical step" to getting drugs and drug dealers off the streets.

"The opioid epidemic that is occurring here in our backyard is not a problem that can be addressed by a single agency--it will take cooperation throughout all levels of law enforcement," Smith said.