An unsanctioned overdose-prevention site for drug users plunked down in Nanaimo City Hall’s parking lot will remain in operation despite shutting down city hall buildings for a day.
“It’s in operation and we plan on keeping it in operation in this location or another location until Island Health gets off their bureaucratic butts,” said Nanaimo Coun. Gordon Fuller. “They say they’ll have something next week. They better have something next week.”
On Thursday, Nanaimo chief administrative officer Tracy Samra shut down two of the city’s downtown buildings based on “public safety concerns” after the unsanctioned overdose-prevention site was set up Monday in city hall’s Wallace Street parking lot.
Two alternate buildings on Victoria Avenue delivered the services on Thursday.
Samra then called an emergency meeting to resolve the “safety” issue but only three councillors — Fuller, Jim Kipp and Diane Brennan — showed up.
“We did not achieve a quorum at today’s scheduled council meeting,” said Samra. “As a result, city staff will seek direction from council at the next scheduled meeting on Jan. 9, 2017.”
The city buildings will re-open today “with the addition of security services for public safety,” said Samra.
“In the interim, city staff with the assistance of bylaws, fire services and the RCMP, will continue to monitor the unauthorized and unregulated injection site located adjacent to city hall,” said Samra. “Unregulated drug consumption sites pose serious public health and public safety risks.”
Samra said before closing the buildings she had tried for 24 hours to get action from Island Health.
“I have been unable to get a commitment from them to take action, nor can I compel them to do something to deal with this public health issue,” said Samra.
Nanaimo Mayor Bill McKay said he can’t comment on the situation, as it is in the city manager’s hands.
Councillors Fuller and Kipp opened the temporary overdose-prevention site on Boxing Day with the help of volunteers, noting that Nanaimo has the highest per capita death-from-overdose rate in B.C.
Island Health said it is planning to open an official overdose-prevention site in Nanaimo next week, but the health authority acknowledged Thursday it is still searching for an appropriate site.
“We will have something as quickly as possible,” said Kellie Hudson, spokesperson for Island Health. “We have been working with the City of Nanaimo and other partners up there to get this off the ground.
“We are working under a ministerial order to get an overdose-prevention site … but this pop-up site is not under our jurisdiction,” said Hudson.
On Dec. 12, British Columbia enacted a ministerial order to support the creation of temporary overdose-prevention sites — an emergency response until official supervised-consumption sites, with attached health and social services, are approved by Health Canada.
The temporary drug-injection site in the parking lot of Nanaimo’s city hall consists of a canopy with tarp sides, a source of heat, tables and chairs, and has two people trained to deliver the overdose antidote naloxone and to call emergency services, Fuller said.
Fuller called Thursday’s closing of downtown city hall buildings “an over-reaction” that put too much emphasis on liability rather than the overriding responsibility to save lives amid the overdose crisis.
A record number of people have died from illicit drug overdoses in B.C. this year — 755 between January and the end of November, an increase of more than 70 per cent from the same period last year, according to the B.C. Coroners Service.
Sixty overdose deaths have been recorded in Victoria, trailing only Vancouver at 164 and Surrey at 92. Nanaimo has had 25 deaths.
The overdose-prevention sites offer a hygienic environment where people use their own drugs under the supervision of medical staff. The aim is to reduce the number of overdose deaths, connect people with health-care services and reduce public drug use and the number of discarded needles.
Island Health hopes to open one Health Canada-approved supervised consumption site in Nanaimo and three in Victoria.
In the meantime, the health authority has opened two temporary sites in Victoria and plans for a third in Nanaimo next week.
