BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – Investigators say kratom was found at the scenes of two University of Mississippi students who died Monday, though the substance has not been confirmed as the cause of either death.

Now, their deaths have sparked questions and conversations about the dangers of the substance.

What is kratom

Kratom was banned in Alabama in 2016, one of nine states to fully ban the substance. State officials have been cracking down on illegal production this year.

Irondale Police Chief Paul Kellogg said kratom can be sold in smoke shops or gas stations, marketed as a supplement.

“Kratom is a substance that is sold in smoke shops. It’s advertised or sold as a supplement,” Kellogg said.

It can be sold as a powder, a pill or capsule, a liquid, or in dried leaf form, he said.

Nichole Dawsey, executive director of the Alabama Addiction Prevention Coalition, said kratom carries health risks despite its appearance.

“Kratom does carry some serious health risks and can be habit forming… it can also cause some pretty intense withdrawal and physical side effects, as well as some mental side effects,” Dawsey said.

Chief Kellogg said his department has not dealt with kratom directly, but is aware of its effects.

“It can be highly addictive if you have long-term use, and your body does build a resistance to it. So each time you use it, you have to use a little bit more to get the same effect,” Kellogg said.

Why it’s especially risky for young people

Dawsey said kratom’s impact can be more severe for younger users because the brain is still developing.

“A brain does not typically finish developing until someone is about 25. And during that time, if substances are used, whether it’s alcohol or kratom or something else, it definitely can make that brain more prone to become dependent or addicted to it,” Dawsey said.

She said not everyone who uses kratom realizes what they’re taking. Some people knowingly seek it out as an alternative to opioids or caffeine, she said, while others simply see it at a gas station and assume it’s similar to an energy drink.

Even with the statewide ban, Dawsey said kratom products continue to reach Alabama consumers, often manufactured in unregulated conditions.

She said the products are not manufactured by companies that disclose ingredients or provide guidance on health risks, unlike medications sold at pharmacies.

Statewide enforcement

State agents have executed dozens of search warrants and seized thousands of doses of kratom products statewide this year.

Kellogg said the effects of kratom vary by dose.

“In lower doses, it acts as a stimulant… but in higher doses, it has the same effect as opioids… you really kind of experience everything you experience on painkillers, with all the side effects,” Kellogg said.

Ole Miss deaths

Two college students at Ole Miss were found dead Monday. Investigators say kratom was at both scenes. No one has confirmed kratom caused either student’s death.

Dawsey said deadly outcomes are possible, particularly when kratom is combined with other substances.

“We do know that there have been lives lost to kratom-related overdoses… most drug deaths in general are the result of what’s called polyuse… very few drugs are clean or unadulterated,” Dawsey said.

Experts say kratom is unregulated regardless of its source, meaning users cannot know what the product actually contains.

Help is available

Anyone struggling with addiction of any kind can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which also connects callers with substance use support.

The Alabama Addiction Prevention Coalition offers free local resources, including recovery support groups and help connecting with treatment programs. To find help from the APC, click or tap here.

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MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – Young entrepreneurs competed for seed funding to finance their businesses during the Launch Lower Alabama competition at the University of South Alabama.

Launch Lower Alabama is an entrepreneurial mentoring program and competition hosted by the Melton Center at the university. The program encourages participants to foster innovative ideas through business development, mentorship and seed funding.

University of South Alabama sophomore Bryce Smith won the top prize in the competition. Smith develops hardware and software solutions designed to help saltwater aquarium owners protect their investments.

“Lots of people spend a ton of money on their aquariums,” Smith said. “My experience working at fish stores, people will spend thousands on a single fish. And corals as well, thousands on corals. That’s a lot of money you’re building up in your aquarium and people really want to control that ecosystem.”

Other business products pitched during the competition included a pain cream, a medical device and custom perfume.

Few development issues are currently as hotly debated as data centers. In North Alabama, questions are intensifying as Huntsville and surrounding communities continue expanding both residentially and commercially.

A Gallup poll conducted in March of this year states that 70 percent of Americans are either somewhat or strongly opposed to data center construction in their local area. 

In Madison County, Alabama, state Sen. Sam Givhan said a recent poll he conducted found that 55 percent of respondents in his district opposed additional data center development.

The Huntsville Business Journal spoke with elected officials, residents, and utility representatives about the current and future roles of data centers in North Alabama. 

Data centers in North Alabama

North Alabama is home to two hyperscale data centers built by Meta and Google. 

Meta’s campus is in north Huntsville near Toney. The company is contracted with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for its electricity needs and is a Huntsville Utilities water customer. 

In June 2022, Meta announced plans to add two buildings, bringing the campus to nearly 3.5 million square feet.

Google’s hyperscale data center is in Jackson County in the Bridgeport area near the Tennessee state line. Located at the former TVA Widows Creek coal plant property, the facility also receives electricity through the TVA system. 

In June, Google announced it plans to expand this location by $1.5 billion in 2026 and 2027.

At the time of publication, the Huntsville Business Journal was unable to confirm Google’s water source. 

Smaller data centers in the region include facilities operated by Simple Helix, DC BLOX, and Scipio Technologies.

In Huntsville, Huntsville Utilities Director of External Affairs Joe Gehrdes compared Meta’s water usage with that of another common type of commercial customer. 

“They use about as much as a big retailer might use,” Gehrdes said.

Gehrdes said Meta pays according to the applicable customer classification.

“They are a water customer, but they’re like any other water customer in their rate class. They do not consume massive quantities of water,” Gehrdes explained. 

The long-term picture remains difficult to predict because data center equipment and cooling methods keep evolving.

Gehrdes said he recently attended a presentation about data centers where the speaker said technology is changing so rapidly his presentation will be outdated in 30 days.

TVA aims to protect customers

As data center demand increases, TVA is taking steps to prevent the cost of serving data centers from being shifted to residential customers and other businesses.

In August 2026, TVA’s board approved a new rate structure specifically for data centers effective October 1. Data centers are expected to pay approximately 10 percent more for power, with the increase phased in over three years.

New or expanding data centers requiring more than five megawatts must also pay a capacity commitment charge (CCC). McClain said the charge allows TVA to collect money before investing in the generation and transmission infrastructure needed to serve a project.

“This fee is collected proactively to minimize financial risk for all ratepayers. The capacity commitment charge is about $1.5 million per megawatt,” McClain said.

McClain said the policy is intended to keep other customers from paying for infrastructure built for a data center, particularly if the project does not use all the electricity it requested or does not move forward.

McClain also said the CCC allows TVA to interrupt data center operations to protect grid reliability while infrastructure updates are completed.

Where does this leave the future of data centers in North Alabama? Local leaders weigh in

Huntsville City Council President Jennie Robinson said the city should set standards for resource use and community impacts before considering another hyperscale project.

“Honestly, the one hyperscale data center we currently have in Huntsville is plenty. Any future proposal should be evaluated under a formal city policy addressing location, power and water consumption, noise, infrastructure costs, environmental effects, job creation, and the overall benefit to residents,” Robinson said. 

District 4 City Council Member Bill Kling took a more definitive position on additional development.

“I am opposed, lock, stock, and barrel, to any additional data centers coming into the city of Huntsville. Period,” Kling said. 

Kling said he favors discouraging new projects rather than imposing a temporary pause for further study.

“I’m not particularly interested in a two-year moratorium to study it. Don’t want to study it. We’re done. We got our energy. Legally, I don’t know if we can prevent them, but we don’t have to give them any inducements. We don’t have to give them any support,” Kling said.  

Kling said the city should determine what restrictions are legally available.

“I would certainly encourage the city attorney’s office to investigate and make sure that we’re doing everything we can to discourage them within the law,” Kling said. 

Looking ahead to the 2027 legislative session, Givhan said he expects lawmakers to consider additional data center legislation, particularly changes to the state tax incentives offered to qualifying projects.

“It’s clear now that they want to come whether they get the incentives or not. So why should we give them incentives? From a tax standpoint, I don’t see any reason to do that,” Givhan said.

Givhan said broader restrictions are less likely to gain legislative approval. Instead, he said lawmakers could consider development standards for projects proposed in more rural areas. 

“I think there is some discussion about out in the county where they don’t have zoning, that there might be minimum acreage requirements,” Givhan said. 

Calls for transparency and a pause

Empowering Women’s Causes, a local nonpartisan group, co-sponsored an August public meeting with Robinson and Little to discuss the Meta data center in Huntsville specifically. 

As of September 16, Empowering Women’s Causes President Lynn Anderson said Robinson had promised her a work session to discuss the Meta data center but has yet to schedule one. 

Anderson described the organization’s objective and concerns. 

“We want a moratorium on any new data centers. This technology will be obsolete in less than 20 years. The parts that go into the data center have less than a 10-year life cycle. The anti-corrosive chemicals used in the cooling process are going where?” Anderson said.

Anderson said her group would like to see Huntsville City Council, Huntsville Utilities, Henry Thornton, Meta’s Community Engagement Manager, and Mayor Tommy Battle at the work session. 

“We feel there has been no accountability or transparency about this specific data center. We want to know about what phase this development is in now. Were taxpayer dollars used to entice them to come here?” Anderson said. 

State Rep. Marilyn Lands, Huntsville, also supports temporarily pausing new projects while officials evaluate their implications.

“I think at a minimum we do need some kind of a temporary moratorium so that we can just better understand what’s happening,” Lands said. 

Lands also pointed to recently enacted legislation requiring Public Service Commission review of certain electricity contracts involving large data centers as an initial safeguard.

“I do think that the bill we passed a session that requires the Alabama Public Service Commission review of electricity contracts for these very large data centers is a good first step, but I do think we’re going to have to go further,” Lands said.

 As demand for data centers increases, so will calls for greater transparency, stronger safeguards, and a clearer understanding of what these facilities mean for their surrounding communities.