Ottawa police report a significant increase in drug overdoses over the weekend in the nation’s capital city.
The Ottawa Police Service responded to 19 drug-related overdoses on Saturday and an additional three on Sunday morning.
Emergency responders and civilians administered naloxone, a drug that reverses opioid overdoses, in many of the cases.
According to recent data from Ottawa Public Health, there were 117 emergency hospital visits due to opioid overdoses in May, the highest number since July 2020.
Last July witnessed some of the highest numbers in recent years, with five suspected opioid overdose deaths and 98 hospitalizations in just one week.
At this time, it is unclear if any of the weekend overdoses resulted in emergency hospital visits or fatalities.
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