Police in Salmon Arm, B.C., warn of potent drugs after two overdoses in 24 hours

SALMON ARM — Police in the British Columbia Interior are warning of a “potent” batch of illicit drugs after two suspected overdoses in 24 hours.

Salmon Arm RCMP say in a statement that they have not yet identified the drug involved.

They are asking drug users to have access to naloxone and avoid using drugs alone.

Interior Health issued two drug alerts last week, including one for Kamloops, about 110 kilometres west of Salmon Arm, that warned of fake Dilaudid tablets being sold.

The alert says the counterfeit pills contain the opioid isotonitazene, which its says is up to 50 times stronger than fentanyl and carries “a very high risk of overdose.”

Police say they are also on the lookout for cychlorphine, a rare, new laboratory-made opioid that’s 10 times as potent as fentanyl and cannot be detected by test strips.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 27, 2026.

The Canadian Press