Too little being done in Manitoba to stop drug overdose deaths, say families of victims
CBC
Someone in Manitoba dies from a drug overdose every day on average, and families who have lost loved ones say not enough is being done to keep these preventable deaths from happening.
It's a pain Joseph Fourre and his family are living through right now.
His son, Harlan, was one of six people who overdosed on what RCMP said were tainted drugs in The Pas last weekend.
"It's killing people," he said. "It's killing our kids."
Harlan was expected to be taken off life support earlier this week, but that will now likely happen Friday, when his lungs, kidneys, eyes and tissue will be donated, his father said.
Seeing his son die from a drug overdose brings back painful memories for Fourre.
He lived with addiction himself, and says he suffered a series of overdoses. He only got help when his daughter found him living on the streets, he said.
She "found me, you know, on the streets of another city and … [said], 'That's enough, please come home. I'm getting married. I want you to walk me down the aisle and we love you. I don't want to bury you,'" said Fourre.
He's now been sober for four years.
But too little is being done to help those who are still struggling with addiction, or to help ensure a safe drug supply, he said.
Preliminary data for 2022 released by the province on Thursday shows there were 418 suspected drug-related deaths in Manitoba last year alone.
"It is undeniable that Manitoba, like much of North America, is experiencing a crisis of drug-related morbidity and mortality," Manitoba Chief Medical Examiner Dr. John Younes told CBC via email.
"The deaths are only the tip of the iceberg. For every drug-related death we investigate, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of people out there who are struggling with drug dependency."
Younes said fentanyl is the most prevalent drug associated with drug-related deaths, and was present in about half of all cases last year.