CALGARY—Abdallah Khalifa was checking on the welfare of a man at Whitehorn Station last September when he had a firsthand brush with what he and his employer believe to be a deadly opioid.

During the course of the call, a man inside an elevator was found to be “hotboxing,” Brian Whitelaw, co-ordinator of public safety and enforcement for Calgary Transit recounted.

“While we were dealing with him, the male grabbed something. It appeared to be a knife in his pocket, so I kind of put out my hand right away,” Khalifa told StarMetro. “I said, ‘Sir, you need to keep your hands free where we can see them.’”

That’s where things get blurry for him.

Whatever he was exposed to, it acted quickly. Khalifa immediately felt his throat swell and was having trouble breathing. He asked the man what kind of drugs he had taken and then walked toward a garbage can in the LRT station and threw up. Then he knelt down, feeling like he might faint.

His partner sprung into action and put him in the recovery position — laying him on his side, with his airways open to help with any first-aid response. In a video reviewed by StarMetro, Khalifa coughs and appears uncomfortable as his partner reassures him.

He was given the life-saving drug naloxone through a nasal spray. After a few days, the four-year Calgary Transit peace officer was back on the job and, since then, he and his partner have saved the lives of two overdose victims.

It’s the kind of the risk that frontline workers — such as police, EMS and firefighters — face every day in cities, like Calgary, that are experiencing a surge in opioid use. Many, eager to talk about the full extent of the danger faced by their workers, have taken to repeating the now-familiar warning that a dose of fentanyl the size of a grain of sand is enough to kill.

In 2011, the government of Alberta recorded six fentanyl-related deaths. By last year, that number had risen to 589. So far in 2018, there have been 74 deaths related to fentanyl, according to the province.

For this series, StarMetro spoke to workers in the province who have suffered adverse physical and psychological effects after coming into contact with people they believed were using powerful opioids.

We also spoke to public health experts who are concerned that the risks of second-hand exposure could be overblown.

The provincial government is taking the issue seriously. Alberta Health Services, in a report released last October, pointed to “concerns regarding occupational health risks for workers who may encounter fentanyl or traces of opioids as part of their employment.”

And, in February, the Alberta Opioid Response Commission recommended that the health minister produce guidelines addressing public health risks associated with exposure to opioids, including guides for appropriate personal protective equipment and standards for how to properly address fentanyl-contaminated sites, such as buildings or vehicles.

Dr. Eddy Lang, professor and department head for emergency medicine at the University of Calgary, said most suspected exposure cases are panic reactions, and not related to actually being exposed to a drug.

In confirmed cases, which he said there are only a handful across North America, there are symptoms such as falling into a comatose state and slowed breathing, similar to the reactions people have when they’re purposely taking the drug.

“It’s a true panic reaction to the possibility of exposure, and these could create some really severe symptoms, I don’t want to minimize it,” he said.

Whitelaw said Khalifa’s experience spurred training for his peace officers. And now, they all carry a dose of the nasal spray, on top of the gloves and masks they already have.

D’Arcy Lanovaz, the president of CUPE Local 38, which represents Calgary’s peace officers, said the officers are asking for more to deal with the crisis and its realities. He mentioned a prevalence of weapons on the transit lines, and an increase in intoxicated passengers.

“They want more tools out there to be able to deal with what they’re facing on a daily basis,” he said. “They’ve presented options to the employer. Ultimately, it falls back on the city to decide what to do.”

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So far in 2018, overdoses on the transit system are high. Both January and February counts exceeded last year’s overdoses with a total of 33 — most happening at the Sunalta train station, with six recorded.

Since Calgary Transit started recording overdose calls in April of 2017, they averaged 2.8 every month, but hit a spike in September, where within two weeks, they saw eight overdoses. These calls aren’t just happening centrally. A report provided to StarMetro showed two-thirds of the overdose calls between April and September 2017 happened outside the downtown core.

“It’s grown significantly on the transit system, well beyond what I thought,” Whitelaw said. “I thought when we got the naloxone kits we’d maybe use three or four in the two years that they’re good (shelf life). Right now, in total, we’re down 16 kits. Ten have been used out on the field and I’m sitting here thinking we’re going to have to put another order in for naloxone.”

Helen Pike is a Calgary-based reporter covering social justice, democracy and immigration. Follow her on Twitter: @Metropike

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