'We've been drowning': Saskatoon safe consumption site ED says support desperately needed amid overdose crisis

Liam O'Connor · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 13, 2025 6:57 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

Kayla DeMong fought tears as she described the dire conditions connected the beforehand lines, pleading for much assistance from the province as unit astatine the harm simplification tract she leads effort to support up with the caller spike successful overdoses.

"My unit present cannot bash this anymore. This week they've reversed 23 overdoses conscionable here," DeMong, enforcement director  of Prairie Harm Reduction (PHR), said connected Thursday.

DeMong's comments come in aftermath of 67 overdoses and 1 suspicious decease reported by the Saskatoon Fire Department from March 9 to March 11. 

On Wednesday, the authorities activated the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (PEOC) — thing it said volition assistance enactment and co-ordinate the state and organizations connected the ground like PHR.

The time that announcement was made, DeMong said PHR unit were mitigating overdoses by rotating oxygen and tracking captious signs for astir 30 people. She said they've been doing truthful for weeks.

She said an on-staff paramedic fundamentally does CPR for their full seven-hour shift.

"It is truly fantastic that [the state has] done this [emergency response] and are offering support, but it truly should person been present a period agone due to the fact that we've been drowning for a agelong time," she said.

DeMong said the PEOC called Thursday greeting and asked what she needs astatine the facility.

She said her 2 main asks are boots connected the crushed astatine PHR and a centralized strategy to entree the overdose-mitigating drug naloxone, but that they besides request much oxygen and devices to show vitals.

"We request to cognize that determination is simply a fig to telephone and resources to support," DeMong said.

The unit astatine PHR cognize galore of the radical who entree their services personally, which DeMong said adds other stress.

"Having to revive them is incredibly traumatizing for the staff," she said. "It's similar if you had to revive your sister oregon your brother. That's what they're going done present and we request help. They can't instrumentality that anymore."

Premier connected fund priorities

Premier Scott Moe spoke connected Thursday astir spending connected information the nationalist volition spot successful the upcoming budget, acceptable to beryllium tabled connected March 19.

"We are going to beryllium making each concern and taking each accidental to guarantee that the communities wherever we unrecorded are safe," Moe said.

The premier highlighted entree to recovery, urgent attraction and analyzable needs shelters, and besides expanding the consequences for radical bringing drugs into communities.

"We request to get that poison retired of [users'] hands, and we request to get the cause dealers disconnected our streets, and truthful enforcement precise overmuch is portion of our absorption and ensuring that our communities are harmless moving forward," Moe said.

Moe besides spoke to what the PEOC volition do, saying it would assistance enactment organizations that request assorted resources.

"There are occasions wherever situations transcend the coping capacities of the section authorization oregon wherever the section authorization requires further support," said an email from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA).

"The PEOC tin elevate its operations erstwhile emergencies statesman to escalate beyond the capableness of a section jurisdiction, oregon the exigency extends to a fig of jurisdictions."

The SPSA said the intent of the PEOC is to supply a forum for accusation sharing, treatment and decision-making.