Concerns over toxicity of unregulated drugs on Ottawa streets, city warns

Ottawa’s unregulated drug supply is seeing a trend of an increased detection of xylazine and benzodiazepines, the city warns.

The city’s police service, paramedics, Ottawa Public Health and the Overdose Prevention and Response Taskforce have issued an alert to warn people about the risk of overdose associated with those drugs.

"These substances are often present together with opioids, significantly increasing the risk of overdose and other harms. Benzodiazepines and xylazine can cause extreme drowsiness and sedation and slow a person’s breathing and heart rate," the groups warned.

"Symptoms of xylazine and benzodiazepine toxicity can be similar to those associated with opioids, but neither will respond to naloxone."

Benzodiazepines overdose

Unregulated supply of benzodiazepines and benzo-related drugs are often being mixed with opioids like fentanyl. The symptoms of toxicity can last for hours and include:

• Extreme sleepiness or passing out

• Dizziness, poor balance, and poor movement control

• Slurred speech

• Memory loss

• Loss of consciousness or “blackouts”

• Death

Xylazine overdose

Xylaxine or “horse tranquilizer” -- a drug typically used by veterinarians for sedation, muscle relaxation and pain relief -- is not approved for human use. Ottawa Public Health says its harmful effects include:

• Severe skin lesions, such as ulcers or abscesses by people who inject drugs

• Blurry vision, confusion, dizziness, drowsiness, difficulty moving, slurred speech and fatigue

• Very slow, or irregular breathing (or not be breathing at all)

• Low blood pressure and slower heart rate

• Death

How to respond to an overdose?

In all cases of suspected overdose, call 9-1-1 right away for emergency help.

• Give naloxone if you have it. While it will not have an effect on benzodiazepines or xylazine, it can temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and can be safely given to people who have taken non-opioid drugs, such as benzodiazepines or xylazine.

• Perform chest compressions and/or rescue breathing or CPR as needed.

• Stay with the person until emergency help arrives. The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act provides some legal protection for people seeking emergency support during an overdose.

The warning comes after the City of Belleville declared a state of local emergency on Thursday related to overdoses after responding to an unprecedented string of overdoses on Tuesday.

Mayor Neil Ellis issued the declaration 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.

Overdose an epidemic in eastern Ontario

In 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