The BC Coroners Service confirms 2020 was a record year for the number of fatal drug overdoses, with 1,716 across B.C.

The previous record high was 1,549 in 2018.

Kamloops saw 60 lives lost from overdose in 2020, which is an all-time record in the city. The previous high was 46 in 2018.

For the year, five cities in B.C. saw more deaths than Kamloops by overdose, including Vancouver (408), Surrey (214), Victoria (122), Abbotsford (65) and Kelowna (61).

In December, there were 152 suspected fatal overdoses in B.C., including five in Kamloops.

Chief coroner Lisa Lapointe says illicit drug deaths continue to be largely due to fentanyl. Most, 84 per cent, were people using indoors, and the majority of those people were using alone. Four out of five fatal overdoses were men, and almost two-thirds of deaths were people aged 30 to 59.

“We know the harm reduction measures implemented had a measurable effect in reducing deaths in 2019, and the number of deaths decreased. With the pandemic, access to harm reduction measures was reduced, people self-isolated, and the harm associated with the illicit drug market returned with a vengeance,” Lapointe says.

A provincial health emergency was declared in B.C. nearly five years ago, in April of 2016. Since then, Lapointe says nearly 7,000 British Columbians have died from an overdose.

“With deaths due to drug toxicity far surpassing the number of deaths due to suicide, motor vehicle collisions, homicides, and prescription drug deaths combined.”

B.C.’s Minister of Mental Health and Addictions called today’s news of overdose deaths “heartbreaking.”

Sheila Malcolmson says street drugs have become more toxic during the pandemic because of disruptions to supply chains.

“We don’t want to see to see another report like this ever again,” she says.

“That we had been able to drop the rate of overdose deaths before the pandemic does give us some encouragement, that the measures put in place before the pandemic were taking effect.”

Malcolmson was asked if government values some lives more than others, based on much more swift action taken to fight COVID-19 versus fatal overdoses.

“Not at all. We recognize every life lost… Almost five people a day die to the overdose crisis. And we are working to save those lives, with frontline organizations and the health authorities in every section of the province.”

She also said frontline workers in the overdose crisis have not had sufficient support from government.