Calgary Fire Department logs record opioid overdose calls in July

The Calgary Fire Department says there were a record number of opioid overdose calls in July.

It says the 144 calls marked a 20 per cent increase over the same month last year and a 450 per cent increase over July 2016.

WATCH: Fire Chief Steve Dongworth said the situation has, “exceeded anything we’ve ever seen before.”

January and March of this year had set records, with 134 and 139 overdose calls respectively.

The fire department says crews have been administering the overdose antidote naloxone, which reverses the effects of opioids
such as fentanyl, to one patient a day on average.

Opioid overdose calls had never exceeded 10 per month until April 2015.

Fire Chief Steve Dongworth says it’s a concerning trend and the calls are dispersed throughout the city.

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