Edmonton records 770 overdose deaths in 2025, worst year on record as city grapples with worsening crisis

Edmonton's overdose crisis reached a grim milestone in 2025: 770 people died of overdoses — the worst year on record — even as overdose death rates declined across most of Canada.

City councillors learned of the figure in a June memo from the city's deputy manager of community services and said they were shocked. The trend stands in stark contrast to national patterns: while overdose deaths have decreased elsewhere in Canada, Edmonton's have climbed consistently over the past decade.

The disparity is stark. Between January and April this year, Edmonton recorded 200 overdose deaths — nearly three times as many as Calgary in the same period. Calgary also had substantially lower overdose death rates than Edmonton in 2025.

Edmonton's response includes progress on 31 of 36 recommendations from an action plan council approved in 2023. The city allocated $412,000 in annual ongoing funding for implementation and has distributed $1.1 million in federal funds to six local organizations. Transit peace officers responded to 2,359 overdose-related events in 2025 and used naloxone 522 times — a 41 per cent increase from 2024.

Coun. Keren Tang, who has a public health background, said she wants to see more focus on harm reduction in Edmonton's response. A recommendation to advocate for supervised consumption services or overdose prevention sites is "no longer applicable" due to provincial policy that has closed such sites in Alberta, the memo states. Tang raised concern that aligning with provincial strategy could diminish harm-reduction efforts when research shows the entire spectrum — from harm reduction to recovery — is necessary.

The city plans to continue fulfilling recommendations and align with the provincial government's recovery strategy. Officials are exploring naloxone training for all interested city staff and will make recommendations next month.