New data from the BC Coroners Service shows there were a total of 18 toxic drug deaths in Kamloops during the first three months of 2023.
Provincewide, they say there were 596 such deaths in the province – with at least 177 in February and 197 in March – adding to a revised total of 222 in January. There were six toxic drug deaths in Kamloops in Jan. 2023, though the data by municipality released Tuesday was not broken down by month.
The Coroners do however say that the 596 lives lost between January and March is the second-highest total ever recorded in the first three months of a calendar year, behind the 599 seen just last year.
“On April 14, we once again observed the anniversary of the longest public-health emergency in our province’s history,” Chief Coroner, Lisa Lapointe, said.
“Since the emergency was first declared, more than 11,000 people have lost their lives due to the unregulated drug supply. This is a crisis of incomprehensible scale, and I extend my deepest condolences to everyone who has experienced the loss of someone they loved.”
The Coroners also say the total number of deaths due to toxic drugs in 2022 has been increased to 2,314 – up from 2,272 – making it the deadliest year on record. With a revised total of 92, 2022 was the third straight deadliest year on record, up from the previous record of 77 set in 2021, and 60 the year before.
Lapointe says unregulated drug toxicity continues to be the leading cause of unnatural death in British Columbia, accounting for more deaths than homicides, suicides, motor vehicle incidents, drownings and fire-related deaths combined.
“It is clear that an urgent response to this crisis is required and overdue,” Lapointe added.
“Recommendations made by multidisciplinary experts on two Coroners Service Death Review Panels and the Province’s Select Standing Committee on Health into the crisis support the urgent implementation of a safe, regulated supply of substances for those at risk of serious harm or death, as well as provincial standards for the provision of evidence-based treatment and recovery services, along with requirements for reporting outcomes.”
