The Blood Tribe issued a local state of emergency Friday after an unusual spike in overdoses that left at least one person dead. After an emergency meeting in Lethbridge, Blood Tribe Chief Roy Fox said the band's government has pledged a minimum of $750,000 to help front-line workers care for people in distress. Frontline staff overworkedPolice, paramedics and other staff on the reserve have been overworked as they responded to 30 overdoses in the past week, Fox said. Lethbridge first responders handled more than 50 overdoses in a week, though there could be some overlap with cases reported on the Blood reserve. Help coming for Blood TribeDeclaring a state of emergency gives the crisis response a higher priority and shows surrounding communities "the Blood Tribe is in distress," said Rick Tailfeathers, who handles communication for the chief and council.

Source: CBC News March 03, 2018 00:45 UTC