PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A hero stepped in to save the life of someone found overdosing in a tent near Blanchet House on Wednesday.
Christopher Woody is a part of the new Old Town InReach program team, a newly formed group that helps out various organizations that serve the homeless community. He says on Wednesday he was at Blanchet House during their dinner service when someone ran to the door to let them know someone was overdosing in a tent outside.
“It was surreal. Everything seemed to slow down for me,” Woody said.
Woody says he helped administer Narcan to a woman who was passed out and appeared to have stopped breathing. After the first dose he administered didn’t revive her, he gave her a second dose.
“I was feeling a lot of sadness. I wasn’t feeling a lot of hope for a while,” he said.
Thankfully, the woman regained her breath just before paramedics arrived.
“The victim just popped right out of it, very confused. We were all very grateful,” Woody said. “I’m glad I was here, I’m glad I had been taught how to administer it.”
The InReach Team says they’ve seen more overdoses lately because of fentanyl.
“It’s nothing new, it’s been going on for the last couple years,” said Casey Culley with the InReach team. “I think specifically pertaining to overdoses and usage, it’s stepped up in the last year. It’s progressively gotten worse in the last three (years).”
For that reason, Woody encourages everyone to have Narcan on hand and learn how to use it.
“You can definitely save lives,” added Woody.
The team also says awareness and harm reduction around drugs are important too.