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Four overdose deaths over the weekend in Red Deer

Turning Point petitioning for supervised consumption site
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Executive director Stacey Carmichael has boxes of syringes piled high in her office, one of the harm reduction supplies available from Turning Point. (File photo by Advocate staff)

Four people in Red Deer died of drug overdoses over the Victoria Day long weekend and 20 more overdose fatalities were prevented with the help of naloxone, according to Turning Point.

“The numbers are greater throughout Central Alberta. I know of one (fatality) for sure,” said executive director Stacey Carmichael on Wednesday.

She said so far in May the harm reduction agency has heard of six Red Deer deaths, 68 reversals and has distributed 469 free naloxone kits that contain medication to temporarily reverse opioid poisonings until paramedics arrive.

“We’re in a bad cycle here for sure. It’s frustrating because we feel like we could be doing things a lot better.”

Turning Point says operating a supervised drug consumption site at its downtown location could better reduce the death toll. But recently city council gave first reading to a bylaw amendment that would licence a mobile version of the site.

Last year council decided a fixed site would only be allowed on the grounds of Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, but neither Turning Point nor Alberta Health Services agree with the location.

RELATED: Mobile supervised consumption site clears first hurdle at Red Deer council

Turning Point’s proposal for a supervised drug consumption site in downtown Red Deer is endorsed

Earlier this month Turning Point developed a new website — www.scsreddeer.com — with a petition that calls on city council to support a supervised drug consumption site at Turning Point’s office. As of Wednesday 110 people have signed the petition.

The website also encouraged Central Albertans to get involved by writing to city and government officials and included local data and research to support its consumption site.

Carmichael said the hospital is at capacity and the better location is downtown at Turning Point where its clients are already.

“People are dying — the key word is people. Can we please help them. This is terrible.

“I’ve got clients in here I knew when they were little kids. I’m afraid they’re going to die and we have a solution and we can’t do it,” she said breaking down in tears.

In 2017 the fentanyl crisis took the lives of 562 Albertans including 25 Red Deerians to give the city the second highest rate of fentanyl deaths among Alberta’s cities.

In 2016 Red Deer had the highest rate of fentanyl fatalities with 23 deaths.

Carmichael said the rate may have dropped, but the number of deaths is increasing.

She said the mobile site is back on Monday’s city council’s agenda, but it will take months before it is operating. Meanwhile Turning Point will be encouraging people to sign its petition and will be hosting community meetings.

Those in need of a consumption site are not leaving the community, she said.

“The majority of people we talk to, this is their home. This is where they belong and we need to make it better.”



szielinski@reddeeradvocate.com

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