The number of fentanyl-related deaths in Alberta is more than 16 times higher than it was three years ago.
The party drug contributed to more than 100 deaths in 2014, up from six in 2011.
There have been major seizures of tablets in the last year in Grande Prairie, including a large bust of 507 tablets earlier this month, and the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team’s largest ever seizure of fentanyl in October 2014.
10,000 were seized last fall alone.
Alberta Health Services and the Chief Medical Examiner are concerned about the increase in use, as it can be hard to tell fentanyl from other drugs, but it is significantly more toxic.
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It can easily be mistaken for OxyContin, but is reportedly 20 times more potent.