Portland police and EMTs responded to eight suspected drug overdoses in a roughly 24-hour period between Sunday and Monday, police said Tuesday.

The suspected overdoses were not fatal, and most of the people treated were given doses of Narcan, which reverses the effects of opioid overdoses.

Portland police Lt. Robert Martin said the department sees roughly two or three per day on average. All of the people involved in the most recent spate of overdoses were taken to the hospital, Martin said.

The first overdose was reported at 11:55 a.m. Sunday on Brackett Street. The second came in at 3:25 p.m. at 21 Chestnut St., where police and rescue workers found a man on the sidewalk apparently overdosing.

The third was reported about 5 p.m. at 620 Congress St., inside Coffee by Design. The patient there was given one dose of Narcan before EMTs arrived and took over treatment.

The fourth overdose occurred at the Cumberland County Jail. Officials there identified the inmate as Danyielle Banks, 43, of Biddeford. Two doses of Narcan were administered by jail medical staff before city EMTs arrived.

Police responded to the fifth overdose, also around 7 p.m., at 861 Congress St., where a person was found in the street overdosing. Police said the patient was administered three doses of Narcan before EMTs arrived.

The first overdose on Monday happened at the Oxford Street Shelter about 12:30 a.m., where two doses of Narcan were administered before EMTs arrived.

The final incident in that period was reported at 9:10 a.m. at 703 Congress St., where two people were experiencing an overdose, but claimed they had ingested over-the-counter medication. It was unclear if opiates were the cause of that incident.


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