New data from the BC Coroners Service says at least 458 people experiencing homelessness in the province died in 2023, with the toll almost tripling in just three years.

There were 33 such deaths recorded in the Thompson-Cariboo-Shuswap.

The service says in a news release there’s been a 23% increase from the 373 recorded deaths of unhoused people the year before. It says 91% of the 2023 deaths were classified as accidental, including 86% due to drug toxicity.

The data show 79% of those who died were male, while more than half were between the ages of 30 and 49.

Chief Coroner Dr. Jatinder Baidwan says the numbers speak to the “tragic reality of the struggles many face in our communities throughout BC.”

The death toll is up by 195% from the 155 who died in 2020.

Baidwan says that between 2016 and 2023, 1,940 deaths among people identified as unhoused were reported to the Coroners Service.

The coroners service defines a person experiencing homelessness as someone living outdoors or in a car, or in emergency, temporary or short-term shelter.

Kamloops set for homeless funding from provincial & federal government

The data was released the same day that the provincial and federal governments announced they had signed an agreement to contribute $39.9 million each over two years to help support unhoused people.

A news release from B.C.’s housing ministry on Friday said the funding will be made available in Vancouver, Abbotsford and Kamloops.

The coroners service report says 28% of deaths among the unhoused in 2023 happened in winter, and 27% in spring.

It says 26% happened in the Fraser Health Authority, while 25% occurred in the Island Health region.