Surge of Weekend Drug Overdoses in Ottawa Part of Ongoing National Crisis

An Ottawa police officer runs with his weapon drawn in Ottawa on Oct. 22, 2014. A year has passed since Michael Zehaf Bibeau shot Cpl. Nathan Cirillo and injured a security guard on Parliament Hill before being shot dead by Parliament’s sergeant-at-arms. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

Ottawa police say nearly two dozen people suffered drug overdoses over the weekend in the country’s capital city.

The Ottawa Police Service says it responded to 19 drug-related overdoses on Saturday, and another three on Sunday morning.