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Opioid overdoses in Calgary expected to get worse

Aug 16, 2018 | 12:38 PM

Calgary’s fire chief says the worst of the opioid overdose problem in his city may be yet to come.

Chief Steve Dongworth was commenting today on overdose calls from July, which show a 20-per-cent increase over the same month last year and a 450-per-cent jump over July 2016.

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

There were 228 opioid overdose deaths in Alberta in the first 18 weeks of this year and 583 in 2017.