‘Very concerning’: Edmonton sees spike in carfentanil deaths

Carfentanil is estimated to be 100 times stronger than fentanyl and 10,000 times stronger than morphine. It is used legally only as a tranquilizer for large animals such as elephants and is not approved for human use. (CTV News file photo) (File)

One of the province’s new health agencies is warning about a rise in carfentanil-related overdoses in the city of Edmonton.

Recovery Alberta said in a news release, the week of Aug. 25, paramedics responded to 321 opioid-related calls which is 39 per cent more than the week prior.

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Of those calls, 234 of them or 73 per cent were in the city of Edmonton.

The agency said while fluctuating emergency calls don’t always indicate more deaths, it found from January to May carfentanil-related deaths in Edmonton jumped from 17 to 78 per cent compared to 2024.

It is not approved for human use and is only legal for large animal sedation by veterinarians.

Recovery Alberta called the growing presence of the drug in Edmonton “very concerning”.

According to the Canadian Centre of Recovery Excellence (Medical Brief Template - 2025.08.19) carfentanil is up to 100,000 times stronger than morphine and over 100 times stronger than fentanyl.

Recovery Alberta said it is expanding access to opioid agonist treatment (OAT) which helps stabilize people, reduce cravings and prevent overdoses.

As well, it said an emergency response team made up of paramedics, nurses and health care aides is monitoring clients in and around Hope Mission’s Herb Jamieson Centre.

It said the province is providing additional money so a team can on-shift 24 hours a day, seven days a week, up from 12 hours a day.

For same-day access to treatment it advises calling the Virtual Opioid Dependency Program (Virtual Opioid Dependency Program (VODP) | Recovery Alberta) at 1-844-383-7688.

Naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses the effects of an opioid overdose.

Kits are free in Alberta and are available at most local pharmacies (Get Naloxone | Alberta Health Services).