Paramedics and other emergency responders have been strained lately responding to toxic drug overdose calls. A new province-wide B.C. record was reported on Wednesday, Feb. 25 with 284 calls for help. (Image Credit: Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

overdose crisis

New BC daily record of nearly 300 overdose calls reported, 20 in Nanaimo

Feb 27, 2026 | 2:11 PM

NANAIMO — While fewer people died from toxic drugs in the province last year, there’s been a troubling surge of overdose events recently.

BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) informed NanaimoNewsNOW paramedics responded to 284 overdoses/drug poisoning events in B.C. on Wednesday, Feb. 25, representing a new daily record, eclipsing the previous daily record of 256 requests for help on Jan. 21.

BCEHS also confirmed alarming overdose numbers in Nanaimo on Wednesday.

Twenty overdose/poisoning calls for help were made that day in the Harbour City, prompting constant responses from BCEHS and Nanaimo Fire Rescue crews, particularly in the downtown area.

“BCEHS responded to 1,287 overdose calls in Nanaimo in total in 2025, which is about 3.5 events per day on average,” BCEHS public information officer Brian Twaites relayed.

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February has seen overdose calls spike in Nanaimo, with 12 calls for help reported on Tuesday, and 10 last Friday, well beyond typical call volumes.

Overdose/poisoning response calls are increasingly complex, the BCEHS statement said, which pointed out paramedics are administering more Naloxone than ever before due to the high toxicity and unpredictability of B.C.’s illicit drug supply.

The overdose-reversing agent Naloxone works quickly on opioids like heroin, fentanyl, morphine and methadone, but doesn’t work on non-opioid depressants like benzodiazepines, commonly called benzos, and medetomidine, the BCEHS stated.

“The presence of other drugs, such as benzos and medetomidine, in the toxic drug supply makes responses to calls more challenging: Paramedics have to work faster, more diligently and often longer as patients need to be ventilated longer.”

Island Health issued a drug poisoning/overdose advisory for Nanaimo on Friday, representing the second such bulletin for the city this month.

Nanaimo’s Overdose Prevention Site is located at 250 Albert St., and is open seven days a week between 11:15 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The site operated by the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Mid Island Branch on behalf of Island Health also offers a drug-testing service.

BCEHS recommends the LifeguardConnect app for iPhone, a potentially life-saving resource for those using illicit drugs while alone.

Illicit drugs have claimed well over 16,000 lives in B.C. since April 2016, when a provincial health emergency was declared.

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