Heroin laced with fentanyl continues to cause a crisis in Port Alberni.
Ambulance calls to overdoses almost doubled in the first 3 months of the year, jumping from an average of 21 calls to 40.
Paramedics are also reporting multiple shots of naloxone are being required in many cases to combat the extreme toxicity of the drug.
At least one overdose death has been reported in Port Alberni in the first quarter of 2018.
According to the BC Coroners Service, 15 people have died from drug overdoses in the central island area during the first two months of this year.