Alberta police and politicians are meeting in Sherwood Park, Alta. over the next two days to address how they can work together to combat the dangers of fentanyl.
The two-day Fentanyl Conference will look at issues like the risks of fentanyl use, toxicology of the drug and its importation. It will also allow various agencies, such as police, Alberta Health Services (AHS) and Health Canada, to share ideas and discuss case studies.
Watch Below: A member of the RCMP Clandestine Lab Enforcement and Response Team demonstrates how fentanyl pills are made.
“This is a huge issue for Alberta and all of Canada,” Cpl. Eric Boechler of the RCMP Clandestine Lab Enforcement and Response Team said.
“We’re constantly trying to get ahead of this issue. But we’re continuing to see new analogs, new more dangerous compounds constantly coming out in this epidemic.”
He said a lethal dose of fentanyl is two milligrams, which is approximately the size of two grains of salt.
READ MORE: ‘We are in the middle of a crisis’: fentanyl focus of two-day Calgary conference
Boechler said fentanyl is the drug of choice because it is easy to obtain online and drug traffickers can easily find it and import it.
On Thursday morning, he demonstrated to the media how the illicit drug is made using a pill processing machine, often with counterfeit parts. Boechler said RCMP are concerned because there is no quality control.
“It isn’t easy to create and given again its incredibly toxic nature, even for a chemist to try and actually produce it, it could easily evolve to their death,” he said.
“Even if they get the mixture exactly right, what can potentially happen is if they don’t mix it properly, you’re going to get areas within that batch of higher concentration. We refer to that as hot spots. Even if you get everything right in the mixing amount, you can easily put out products that are easily fatal to somebody on the street.”
The pill processing machines can create up to 6,000 tablets an hour.
RCMP are currently rolling out a new product in the fight against fentanyl – a nasal naloxone spray.
The products cost approximately $150 and Mounties have ordered approximately 13,800 for officers across the country.
Boechler said the nasal spray has the same effectiveness as the current injectable naloxone but is easier to administer.
“It’s extremely easy to use for a first responder in a high-stress environment,” he said.
“Using a syringe and a vial where it may be dark, windy, rainy, high stress, when someone is basically on the ground in a potential death situation – to be able to use the nasal version is so much easier and foolproof.”
Watch Below: The first dealers convicted of trafficking fentanyl are making their way through Alberta’s court system.
There were 153 people in Alberta who died from apparent drug overdoes related to fentanyl during the first half of 2016.
Calgary experienced the highest number of deaths out of any municipality with 61. Edmonton had the second most deaths with 43.
The number of fentanyl-related overdose deaths in Alberta has risen significantly over the past five years.
There were six deaths in the province connected to the drug in 2011; that number spiked to 274 deaths in 2015.
Boechler acknowledges the situation may become worse before it gets better, citing more potent evolutions of fentanyl, such as W18 and carfentanil, which are on the street.
READ MORE: Fentanyl 101 – The facts and dangers
The Fentanyl Conference runs Thursday and Friday. The conference is open to all law enforcement, first responders and invited government agencies.
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