Belleville, Ont. declares state of emergency following 16 overdose calls Tuesday

The City of Belleville has declared a state of local emergency over the "growing addiction, mental health and homelessness crisis."

This comes two days after a string of overdoses in the city.

Mayor Neil Ellis issued the declaration, and is calling on senior levels of government for support to address the crisis.

“We, as a city, know that we are at the point where doing our best doesn’t cut it anymore. Our emergency services, health care system and municipal resources are being stretched to the very limits and we are close to a breaking point," Ellis said in a statement. "We need serious action and support from senior level government to deal with this crisis and until we begin to see meaningful discussions on how to address the matter, I fear nothing will change. That is why we are calling on the Province and federal government for support. I urge our local municipal partners facing the same issues to do the same."

The Belleville Police Service told Newstalk 580 CFRA Wednesday that there were 17 overdose cases in the span of 24 hours, 13 of them within an hour and a half on Tuesday afternoon. The incidents happened in the downtown area.

Police say no deaths were reported.

"We had seen an unprecedented number of overdoses in one confined area," Belleville Police Chief Mike Callaghan told Newstalk 580 CFRA's Ottawa Now with Kristy Cameron on Wednesday. "Thirteen in the span of less than an hour and a half is just unheard of."

Police had asked people at the time to refrain from unnecessary travel to the downtown core to allow crews to respond to the unpreceded incident. All roads are now open.

"The reason that message was sent out had nothing to do with the security of the downtown core. It was to allow emergency vehicles access to get those who had overdosed to a medical facility," said Callaghan.

He said, at one point, there were five ambulances lined up in the area to help transport people to the hospital.

 "We were very fortunate that there were no fatalities. There is a lot of credit that needs to be paid to the emergency services for their unbelievable work, as well as the Quinte health-care system," he said.

The Belleville Police Service said in a news release that it would like to remind anyone who uses drugs of the advice from the Hastings Prince Edward Public Health Unit. "If you use drugs, do not use them while alone, refrain from mixing drugs, try a small amount first to reduce the risk of drug poisoning and always have at least one naloxone kit nearby."

Anyone who is using drugs alone can call the National Overdose Response Service at 1-888-688-6677 and someone will stay on the line with them.

Overdose an epidemic in eastern Ontario

In the the first four weeks of 2024, 22 people died because of suspected drug overdoses, according to recent data from Ottawa Public Health.

The public health unit's weekly overview of suspected drug overdose-related emergency department visits and deaths shows that there was an average of between five and six deaths each week that were believed to be overdose-related between Jan. 1 and Jan. 28.

Meanwhile, a report prepared for the Ottawa's Emergency Preparedness and Protective Services Committee says that Ottawa paramedics and Ottawa firefighters are seeing an increased number of responses for overdose-related calls.

The report was a response to an inquiry by Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante about the cost to Ottawa Fire Services for responding to overdose calls.

"The opioid crisis continues to cause significant harm at a population level and has been further impacted by the increasingly toxic illicit drug supply. The COVID-19 pandemic has also exacerbated many of the issues faced by members of our community who use drugs," the response read.

"Paramedics and firefighters have been reporting an increase in overdose responses and naloxone administration or other lifesaving measures for several years, with almost 1,200 overdose responses in the first half of the year."

With files from CTV News Ottawa's Ted Raymond and Newstalk 580 CFRA's Dani-Elle Dube