The Addiction Crisis in Sherbrooke

Sherbrooke and the surrounding Estrie (Eastern Townships) region have emerged as one of Quebec's most severely affected areas for opioid-related harms. Sherbrooke has recorded 18.2 hospitalizations per 100,000 inhabitants for opioid intoxication, placing it second-highest among Quebec cities. The CIUSSS de l'Estrie-CHUS reported approximately 40 emergency visits per month for suspected opioid intoxications on its territory. In 2024, IRIS Estrie (the local harm reduction organization) described the number of fatal overdoses as "alarming," with 37 overdose victims recorded by July 31, 2024 — more than all of 2022, and trending to surpass 2023's already elevated total of 57. A particularly dangerous new synthetic opioid, protonitazepine (a nitazene approximately 25 times more potent than fentanyl), was detected in Estrie street drug supplies, prompting public health alerts. The dismantling of clandestine laboratories in Drummondville and Dixville in Estrie uncovered over one million illegal tablets. In November 2024, the federal and provincial governments jointly announced $2.5 million in funding for Eastern Townships addiction and overdose prevention, with CAP Estrie and the Centre Jean-Patrice Chiasson (Centre réadaptation en dépendance de l'Estrie) among primary recipients. IRIS Estrie reports that naloxone kit distribution in the region increased sevenfold over five years, reflecting the growing severity of the crisis.

Canada recorded approximately 7,150 apparent opioid-related deaths in 2024, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada — down from roughly 7,560 in 2023, representing an approximately 11% national decline. However, this improvement was concentrated in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and other central and western provinces. Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Northwest Territories all bucked the trend with rising death tolls. Quebec's 645 deaths in 2024 represent roughly 9% of the national total, from a province containing about 23% of Canada's population — though Quebec's rate is now accelerating rapidly and convergence toward western rates is underway. The national crisis emerged in the mid-2010s driven by illicit fentanyl contamination of the drug supply; Quebec entered this phase later but is experiencing a steeper acceleration. Fentanyl or analogues are now detected in approximately two-thirds of Quebec opioid deaths, up from one-third in 2017.

01. What is happening in Sherbrooke

02. A crisis that did not start this month

Quebec is experiencing a worsening opioid and overdose crisis that bucks the national trend. While Canada as a whole saw an approximately 11% decline in opioid-related deaths in 2024, Quebec recorded 645 confirmed or suspected drug overdose deaths in 2024 — the highest annual total in the province's history, and a 33% increase compared to the same period in 2023. Approximately two Quebecers die from an overdose every day. Fentanyl or analogues were detected in nearly two-thirds of opioid deaths. The proportion of suspected overdose deaths involving fentanyl or its analogues rose from 33% in 2017 to 65% by late 2024. Emergency visits for possible opioid intoxication increased by 38% between January and September 2024 compared to the prior year. The Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) warned that Quebec was "not immune to a tragic reversal" and continued to monitor the situation closely. Quebec, along with Newfoundland and Labrador, stood out among provinces for rising deaths while the rest of Canada improved.

03. Why is it getting worse?

Several factors drive the crisis in Sherbrooke and Estrie specifically. First, the rapid spread of ultra-potent synthetic opioids — particularly fentanyl and newer nitazene compounds such as protonitazene (25 times more potent than fentanyl) — has made the street drug supply far more lethal and unpredictable. Standard fentanyl test strips cannot reliably detect nitazenes, and multiple doses of naloxone may be required to reverse overdoses. Second, Sherbrooke's geography as a mid-size regional hub means drug supply chains that originate in Montreal reach it while local harm reduction capacity lags behind major urban centres. Third, Quebec came later to the fentanyl contamination of the drug supply than Western Canada (historically relying more on heroin and prescription opioids), meaning the province is now in an earlier and more acute phase of the fentanyl wave. Fourth, dismantled clandestine laboratories in the region introduced large quantities of new synthetic tablets directly into local supply. Fifth, while naloxone distribution has grown sevenfold in Estrie over five years, awareness and access remain insufficient relative to need. Nationally, Canada recorded approximately 7,150 apparent opioid-related deaths in 2024 (PHAC), with the crisis disproportionately shifting eastward as Western provinces improve.

04. Where hope still lives

Communities across Quebec are responding with naloxone distribution, harm reduction programs, and peer support networks. Every person trained in naloxone use is a potential life saved.

05. In the news

The reporting behind this page:

• Opioid deaths fall nationwide, rise in Quebec and N.L.The Globe and Mail · 2025
• Quebec on pace to record back-to-back years with 600 drug overdose deathsCBC News · 2025
• $2.5M in support announced for Eastern Townships' drug crisisSherbrooke Record · 2024
• L'arrivée d'une nouvelle drogue inquiète à Sherbrooke (protonitazene)Radio-Canada · 2022
• Le nombre de surdoses mortelles est « alarmant », selon IRIS EstrieRadio-Canada · 2024
• L'Estrie n'échappe pas à la crise des opioïdesRadio-Canada · 2022–2023