FATAL STRAIN OF OPIOIDS IN SIMCOE COUNTY, SAY OPP

SEVEN PEOPLE HAVE DIED FROM AN OPIOID OVERDOSE IN THE PROVINCE IN THE LAST WEEK, SAY OFFICIALS

The OPP is warning people with substance misuse issues there is a potentially fatal strain of opioids circulating in the area.

The alert comes after first responders in central Ontario reported seeing seven deaths in the last week — four of them in the Simcoe County/Muskoka area.

"Fentanyl is an extremely potent synthetic opioid, up to 100 times more potent than morphine and up to 40 to 50 times more potent than heroin," OPP said in a press release. "If someone's drug of choice is mixed with or contains fentanyl, it can potentially kill them."

Drug dealers are knowingly distributing products that cause harm and could kill, police added. If opioids are laced with fentanyl, it is impossible for a user to determine the quantity they may be using because you

can't see, smell or taste it.

It's also possible that fentanyl is being laced with carfentanil. "Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid up to 100 times more potent than fentanyl," police said.

The warning was released March 6, which is considered Black Balloon Day, a day to raise awareness about the realities of the opioid crisis.

From 2017 to 2019, there were approximately 95 deaths in Barrie due to drug poisoning, the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition said in a press release.

"There has been so much trauma in the last few years in Barrie," Indigenous Harm Reduction Network spokesperson Denise Baldwin said in a press release. "Our friends, siblings and loved ones are dying or being criminalized and stigmatized."

Baldwin is part of the coalition, which issued a

Getting To Tomorrow: Ending the Overdose Crisis report asking to politicians to decriminalize drugs in Barrie, provide greater access to affordable housing and train social-service agencies in human rights.

"Having an opportunity to gather together, share our stories and make recommendations to our local government to make things better — it doesn't make the pain go away, but it puts us on a path to healing and feeling heard," Baldwin said.

Symptoms of fentanyl or opioid exposure include difficulty walking, talking or staying awake, blue lips or nails, small pupils, cold and clammy skin, dizziness, confusion, choking, gurgling or snoring sounds and an inability to wake up when shaken or shouted at.

If you see someone experiencing these symptoms, call 911 and use naloxone if possible. Naloxone kits are available at the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit offices, community health centres, and many pharmacies.

The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act provides some legal protection for individuals who seek emergency help during an overdose.