Advertisement New England town sees 905% rise in Narcan use for opioid overdoses 116 doses given over 68 days Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Laconia firefighters said they have used over 900 percent more Narcan in the last 5 weeks than in the same period last year.At one point Laconia was seeing a decrease in overdoses but the past 68 days has proven that the opioid crisis remains a big issue in the Lakes Region."The numbers have been the worst we've ever seen in this area," Assistant Fire Chief Kirk Beattie said.In that 68 day period Laconia firefighters responded to an average of 30 overdoses."(There was) an incident the other day where we had six separate overdoses within about a 12-hour period," Beattie said.The department said that's a lot for a community with only about 20,000 people."We represent Belmont Fire Department as well," Beattie said. "In that same time frame they've had 16 overdoses."For a town that size, one in every three emergency calls is for an overdose.Laconia fire personnel administered 116 doses of Narcan, which is 905 percent increase from the same time last year."In years past, 1-2 milligrams should wake people up and get them revived enough to be able to go the hospital," Beattie said. "Some patients are requiring 8-10 milligrams just to get them back enough so we can get them to the hospital breathing on their own."Firefighters said there were no known fatal overdoses during that window but the crisis continues to put a strain on resources."What's frustrating is seeing it happen over and over again so understanding on our part that the problem isn't going away," Beattie said.Firefighters said everyone is doing their part, whether it's police with enforcement or Lakes Region partnership public health for treatment.