"We are there....you won't know that our drug people are out there working because they don't wear uniforms...but they are there," said Deputy Chief of the Panama City Police Department, Scott Irvin.
Irvin said in order for their guys to crack down on drug activity, they need your help.
"The biggest thing we stress over and over again is when you see the activity, call us right away," he added.
Captain Faith Bell of the Bay County Sheriff's Department agreed, adding that educating yourself of the signs of drug abuse can save the life of someone you love.
"If someone in your family has strange behavior, what little things may mean nothing to you, may mean big things to someone who understands it...knowledge is power," added Bell.
Numbers released to News 13 by the Bay County Sheriff's office show in 2011, there were 622 arrests made by the narcotics division--with 1,091 felony drug charges and 507 misdemeanor drug charges.
However, there is help for those that want it. The Restoration Home on 11th street considers itself a healing place for woman facing substance abuse issues. Founder Carla Hightower says the 9 year old program works.
"The biggest thing that we do is offer hope that there is a way out...that there is life on the other side of the bondage and oppression and depression that comes with addiction. I have seen that first hand…lives that have dramatically changed," said Hightower
Tina Danley is one of those changed lives. Years of drug abuse led her to believe she was trapped.
"I've been that one curled up saying there's no way out...this is where I'm at...I'm stuck," she said. "But there's hope...'cause I did drugs off and on for 30 years...I've been clean for three and a half years....I once thought there was no hope...the guidance and support that this place gives for girls living here…There's hope," said Danley.
Restoration Home is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the restoration of individual lives and families through biblically-based counseling, emotional support, trauma-informed care and family-centered practice.
Visit www.restorationhome.org for more information.
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