Vancouver police are warning drug users to be cautious after 11 overdose deaths in 16 days.
Police say the spike is concerning because three people typically die each week from drug overdoses.
The high number of recent deaths occurred in the Downtown Eastside and east Vancouver neighbourhoods, and police believe fentanyl use may be the cause.
Police say the victims ranged in age from 20 to 56 and that not all of them were known or experienced drug users.
Early signs of fentanyl overdose include severe sleepiness, slow heartbeat, trouble breathing, cold, clammy skin, and trouble walking or talking.
The Take Home Naloxone program in B.C. provides training and kits at various clinics and emergency departments so people can take the drug also known as narcan to reverse symptoms of an overdose.
6 PEOPLE CHARGED IN 'SOPHISTICATED' DRUG DISTRIBUTION NETWORK
VANCOUVER — Six people have been charged with multiple drug offences after a lengthy investigation by the Vancouver Police Department.
Police say the suspects are part of a sophisticated network that distributed drugs in the city, on Vancouver Island and into Alberta.
The seven-month investigation included the seizure of $575,000 in cash, multiple firearms, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and nearly 24,000 fentanyl pills.
Eight vehicles and almost $3.8 million in property was also seized, including an apartment in Vancouver, a townhouse in New Westminster and a house in Coquitlam.
The investigation culminated in the arrests of Dennis Halstead and Jason Heyman, both 36, Tara Marshall and Pedro Keymatch, both 32, and Cameron Mak and Charleen Flintroy, who are in their 40s.
The suspects are charged with various trafficking and firearms offences.
