The Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit is sounding the alarm after a sharp increase in suspected opioid poisonings this month, part of a troubling pattern seen across Ontario amid an increasingly unpredictable drug supply.

According to Jacquie Cartwright, community outreach and public relations officer with CK Public Health, emergency crews responded to more than 20 suspected opioid-related calls in October, nearly half of them in the past week alone. Several suspected drug-related deaths have also been reported over the last two weeks, surpassing the area’s usual monthly average of one or two fatalities.

“Strong fentanyl mixed with xylazine (commonly referred to as ‘tranq’) in the local drug supply is suspected to be contributing to this increased risk,” read a media statement from CK Publ

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