435 overdose incidents.
That’s how many overdoses the Saskatoon Fire Department has responded to in March alone.
It’s compared to March 2024, when the fire department responded to 79 incidents, and it’s one of the reasons those in the Bridge City are desperately searching for help.
It’s been a month since Saskatoon saw its first emergency alert about a dangerous increase in overdoses.
Since then, the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (PEOC) has been activated and as of Tuesday, it’s been elevated to level four.
The PEOC is meant to enhance the coordination between government ministries and organizations that respond to overdoses.
“What that does is really around building a collaborative collaboration,” PEOC president Marlo Pritchard said. “A table where we can try to understand what the situation is and build a collective planning cycle where we can support the city of Saskatoon.
The PEOC said so far they are providing support to municipal and emergency staff, advertising a drug alert system, distributing naloxone kits, increasing resources to fire, and adding overdose outreach teams.
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They say the work is making a difference, with nine suspected overdose-related deaths since March 1.
Over the last few days, multiple organizations have temporarily closed because of the overdose crisis.
Last week, Prairie Harm Reduction, the city’s only safe consumption site, announced their closure until March 31 due to workers’ trauma.
“We need the public to understand this: addiction, homelessness and overdose are not distant problems. They are our problems (and) they affect us all,” Ashley Greyeyes, the site’s drop-in supervisor said when they closed.
“These individuals are more than their struggles. They are part of our community, and it’s time we show them the compassion they deserve.”
The Saskatoon Public Library has also closed two locations for the next month as drug use and safety concerns continued to rise.
One of the major contributing factors to the increase in overdoses comes from a “bad batch” of drugs circulating the community. Saskatoon police said they are continuing to investigate where it’s coming from.
“Since the overdoses happened, we’ve have arrested 25 people in regard to fentanyl trafficking and dealing with fentanyl,” Saskatoon police inspector Erin Coates said.
The province said it’s working tirelessly to improve the situation, but advocates say they aren’t doing what’s needed.
Advocate David Fineday said the issues around homelessness have been studied for over 25 years, but no action ever seems to come from this.
“Go find the problem,” he said. “Go talk to them, see what they need… Where’s those millions of dollars (in funding)?”
Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block said her focus continues to be on housing.
“Over the past six months, city council has approved some 256 new affordable housing spaces units,” Block said. “Seventy per cent of which will have wraparound supports. Housing is foundational to the way forward.”
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‘Find the problem’: Saskatoon overdose crisis cripples the community
