BRUNSWICK

Brunswick police officers are now armed with a weapon against opiate overdoses.

Narcan has been provided to the department by the Maine District Attorney General’s Office, according to Brunswick Police Cmdr. Tom Garrepy.

Brunswick police have responded to at least 10 reported overdose calls, and Garrepy estimated there are usually a couple of deaths annually in town due to overdose.

“We have a huge problem across the country with narcotic and opiate abuse, and the unfortunate thing is that people need more and more to keep them going,” said Garrepy, “and all of a sudden, family members or a passerby finds them unconscious or unresponsive and it’s nice to have the tools to take appropriate action.”

Earlier this month, the state Attorney General’s office announced there were 86 drug fatalities during the first 90 days of 2018. The highest number, 18, came in Cumberland County, which had a total of 109 deaths in 2017. None were reported last year or this year in Sagadahoc County.

The first quarter report also shows the deaths this year are increasingly due to illicit drugs — especially fentanyl — as opposed to pharmaceutical opioids. Most of the deaths — 66 percent — were caused by at least two drugs, and three on average. The proportion of deaths due to heroin is on a downward slope this year as well.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff ’s Department deputies have carried a Narcan nasal spray since 2015 with success, according to Chief Deputy Brett Strout.

“We’ve had deputies that have used Narcan that have, in fact, saved lives with it,” he said. “We do notice that local ambulances also have Narcan, so it’s more a matter of who gets there first, as in these cases, often time is a crucial issue.”

During the last three years deputies have administered Narcan 11 times, three of those instances this year.

Bath Police Chief Mike Field said Bath officers will soon carry Narcan, once they undergo training by the city’s fire and rescue personnel. While Bath is geographically small and its EMS service has very fast response times, he said, “it’s good for us to have it.”

The department’s K-9 handler, Cpl. Michelle Small, already carries Narcan in case the dog gets exposed during its drug work.

In the Midcoast, Richmond officers and all state troopers carry Narcan, and Freeport officers will soon. Phippsburg Police Chief John Skroski also hopes to have his officers carry it in the near future.

Topsham Police Chief Chris Lewis said Topsham police don’t have plans to equip officers with Narcan because it has a 24-hour EMS response.

Each Brunswick officer will have two doses with them to be used as a temporary remedy for overdose victims until emergency medical personnel can arrive on the scene. Once a dose is used, it will be replaced by the Attorney General’s office.

The department is required to have a policy in place for its use, and training provided every two years. The training, Garrepy said, teaches officers to recognize the signs and symptoms of an opiate overdose. He said Narcan, or Naloxone, is used when a person is not responsive, to temporarily reverse the effects of opioids which causes lower breathing and a low oxygen level to the brain.

“It is important to remember that Narcan is not effective against non-opiate drugs,” he said.

dmoore@timesrecord.com

Deaths in Maine

• EARLIER THIS MONTH, the state Attorney General’s office announced there were 86 drug fatalities during the first 90 days of 2018. The highest number, 18, came in Cumberland County, which had a total of 109 deaths in 2017.