U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama is urging Alabamians to “spread the word about the dangers” of deadly fentanyl and for the state to be “vigilant” about a drug that is contributing in a surge of overdose deaths nationwide.

“We’ve got a role to play, all of us,” Tuberville said in a new public service announcement released Friday. “I urge every Alabamian to spread the word about the dangers of fentanyl. Urge all parents, teachers, and coaches o be vigilant against this threat. Let’s all of us to do our part to keep Alabama safe.”

The PSA comes about a week after Tuberville joined a panel of experts during a virtual town hall hosted by AL.com. He was joined by Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones, the 2022 president of the Alabama Sheriff’s Association; Dr. Shereda Finch, executive director of the Council on Substance Abuse; and UAB physician and Heersink School of Medicine faculty member, Dr. Stefan Kertesz.

The panel discussed was moderated by AL.com’s Ivana Hrynkiw.

Related: Watch Tommy Tuberville, experts talk fentanyl crisis in Alabama

Tuberville briefly touched upon the panel talk in his PSA.

“Last week, I held a town hall with Alabama’s top experts on fentanly,” Tuberville said. “What we learned was disturbing. Fentanyl is one of the deadliest drugs we’ve ever seen. A dose a size the pinch of salt can be fatal. Even trying fentanyl once can be fatal.”

Tuberville also blamed the drug’s rapid rise in the U.S. on what he criticizes as a lack of U.S.-Mexican border security. Republicans, in recent months, have blamed President Joe Biden’s administration’s immigration policies and the record-number of border arrests for what they say is a sign of a rise in drugs entering the U.S.

“Almost all of this fentanyl came here across the southern border,” Tuberville says in the PSA. “Washington has got to get serious and secure our southern border.”

The dangers of illicit fentanyl are jolting. The drug, considered 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine, is linked to a 271% increase deaths in the last two years, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s the leading cause of death for those ages 18-45.

Tuberville, during the AL.com town hall, said he believed that education is the most important tool in combatting the drug. He did a PSA on illicit fentanyl in October, warning that Halloween candy could be laced with fentanyl. Researchers on tainted candy, though, said Tuberville’s concerns about rainbow-laced fentanyl dropped into trick-or-treat bags was unfounded.

Recent polling shows that deadly drugs, like opioids/fentanyl, is the top health threat for Republicans. An Axios-Ipsos poll, released on Feb. 23, shows that 37% of Republicans surveyed pointed to the deadly drugs as the No. 1 threat to American’s health, compared to 17% of Democrats. For Democrats, 35% pointed to guns and firearm access as the No. 1 public health threat, compared to only 4% of Republicans.

In Alabama, steps are being taken to try and combat the fentanyl crisis. A bill to impose mandatory prison times for distributing fentanyl was near the top of the agenda for Alabama lawmakers when they resumed their regular session Tuesday. The state Legislature is controlled by a supermajority Republicans.

Officials from Alabama’s largest statewide health organizations, earlier this month, launched an “Odds are Alabama” campaign to spread the word about the danger posed by fentanyl. The effort is aimed at directing people to places where they can get help with addiction and access resources like naloxone, a medication that can reverse opioid overdoses, and testing strips that can detect the presence of fentanyl in other drugs.

The Alabama Department of Public Health and the Jefferson County Health Department offer free naloxone and training in how to use it.