ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — The Asheville Police Department responded to 521 overdose-related calls in 2025, a decrease of 187 calls compared with 2023, which marked the highest year on record in the past decade, according to department data.
The 2025 figures average out to about two overdose calls per day, or roughly 10 per week, police said. The totals reflect only calls for service handled by the Asheville Police Department and do not include responses by other agencies.
When asked whether the number of overdose calls on a typical day is consistent with broader trends, police said last year’s average of about two calls per day serves as a benchmark.
Statewide data show the overdose crisis remains a significant public health issue.
According to the state medical examiner’s office, there were 218 suspected overdose deaths in December 2025 compared to 222 in December 2024.
According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, the overdose death rate in North Carolina was 26.6 per 100,000 residents in 2024, representing 2,934 deaths. Recent year-end data are not yet final, but an estimated 3,025 North Carolinians — about eight per day — are suspected to have died from an overdose in 2024.
From 2000-23, more than 41,500 North Carolinians lost their lives to drug overdoses. In 2023 alone, an average of 12 people per day died from overdoses statewide.
The overdose-related emergency department visit rate in North Carolina was 96.2 per 100,000 residents in 2025, representing 10,627 emergency room visits, according to the health department.