Councillor reiterates calls for injection centre following spate of drug overdoses in Cork

With the HSE confirming that the number of drug overdoses relating to a powder sold as heroin reported in Cork over the past week has risen to 13, a former lord mayor has said the city needs to look again at the need for a supervised injection centre.

The HSE issued an extreme risk drug warning last Thursday after a nitazene-type substance had been linked with what it described as “recent cases of serious overdose in Cork city”.

Describing nitazene as “a strong synthetic opioid that can cause serious overdoses, hospitalisations, and drug-related deaths” the HSE confirmed that it “could be sold as a powder or as heroin without people knowing”.

The extreme risk warning for Cork followed dozens of serious overdoses in Dublin over the past month.

In the wake of the alert, Fianna Fáil councillor Colm Kelleher told The Echo that the current spate of overdoses in Cork highlighted the need for an injection centre in the city.

He noted that his successor as lord mayor, Fine Gael councillor Deirdre Forde, had in May of this year led a delegation which had visited a medically supervised drug-taking centre in Lisbon.

“They pioneered [that service] in Portugal and it is working over there,” said Mr Kelleher.

“It has proven that anyone who does engage with those services, 99% engage with additional services afterwards, ie treatment, wraparound services, addiction counselling, mental health counselling, and it gives them an avenue to get out of the throes of addiction.”

He added that Ireland has legislation in place since 2017 to allow the introduction of similar supervised injection facilities in Ireland, with one such service being launched in Merchants Quay in Dublin in the first quarter of 2024.

Mr Kelleher said his brother Don’s struggle with heroin addiction had informed his own awareness and understanding of addiction.

“He, thankfully, now is in full recovery and is absolutely flying, but at one stage he wasn’t, and there are a lot of people unfortunately within the city who are at that point in their journey with their addiction,” he said.

“I would just stress that anyone who is unfortunate enough to be caught in the stranglehold of heroin should be very vigilant and aware that there is a bad batch in circulation.

“I would implore anyone who has a son, daughter, sister, or brother [living with addiction] that there are services available, that treatment is available, and help is out there.

“If anyone needs any help, in any shape or form, accessing addiction services within our city, just pick up the phone and give me a call,” Mr Kelleher concluded.

Meanwhile, the HSE has urged drug users to treat all substances with caution, warning that it is not possible to be “sure of what’s in it or its strength”.

Urging extra caution “at the moment”, the HSE recommended that drug users not buy new types of drugs, or new batches, or purchase drugs from new sources.

The HSE also urged drug users to always carry naloxone, a medicine used to rapidly reverse or reduce the effects of an opioid overdose.

• For further information, support, and harm reduction, go to drugs.ie or contact the HSE Drug and Alcohol Helpline on 1800 459 459 or email helpline@hse.ie Monday-Friday, 9.30am-5.30pm.