Queen City Patrol working to make Regina's streets safer

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Will and LeCaine previously volunteered with White Pony Lodge, an organization that provides needle pickup and does community patrols in North Central. On the morning of Nov. 26, 2019, during one of their sleepless nights, LeCaine and Will headed out to do needle pickup. They ended up finding 348 needles.

It was a “wow” moment for them both. Realizing there was likely a need for the service throughout Regina, the pair decided to start Queen City Patrol.

“We came up with that name because we want to be able to cover the whole city, not just North Central, not just downtown and that kind of thing,” said Will.

The group was recently certified by the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) to provide Narcan training and distribute Narcan kits, which are used to reverse the effects of opioid overdoses.

Will said Queen City Patrol trained approximately 20 people to administer Narcan last month, including staff at the Atlas Hotel. The group has received so many requests for training that it has had to press pause until it receives more Narcan kits.

Will said one of her friends has saved two people from overdoses thanks to Narcan kits. LeCaine has also used Narcan on two occasions, once while out with Queen City Patrol and again after getting off a shift with the group. While making his rounds on his way home near the Toys R Us location on 730 Albert St., LeCaine noticed a woman lying on the ground who was overdosing. Thankfully, he always carries a Narcan kit on him.