New data from the BC Coroners Service shows a threefold increase in the number of homeless people who died in 2022.

The latest figures released Thursday shows there were 20 such people in Kamloops who lost their lives in 2022, more than triple the six lost in 2021. The 2022 number was one fewer than the 21 lives lost between the years of 2019 and 2021.

The Coroners say there were at least 342 such deaths reported last year, with the vast majority – 308 – deemed to be accidental, up from 235 in 2021. The toxic drug crisis was responsible for 287 of those deaths in B.C., up from 219 in 2021.

“Just as it has across all demographics and in communities throughout B.C., the toxic drug supply has significantly contributed to the increased number of deaths among people who are precariously housed or experiencing homelessness,” the BC Coroners Service said in a release.

“More than eight out of every 10 deaths in the review period were classified as accidental, and of those accidental deaths, more than nine in 10 were determined to have been caused by unregulated drugs.”

Natural causes was listed as the cause of death for 18 people, with homicides and suicides accounting for eight and six respectively.

The Coroners defined a person experiencing homelessness as someone who was living outdoors, in a make-shift shelter, a parked vehicle, a vacant home, or another structure “not intended for habitation.” It also included people who are staying in an emergency or short-term shelter, a safe house, or in transitional housing.

“Some individuals who do not meet the above definitions of homelessness may be considered homeless under other definitions,” the Coroners statement added.

“Examples include: people in correctional institutions, hospitals or residential drug or alcohol treatment facilities; and people who have permanent residences but are considered at high risk of homelessness because of unemployment, domestic violence or other factors.”

Most of the deaths in 2022 were in Vancouver, Victoria, and Surrey, with data also showing that 82 per cent of the people who died were men.

You can find the full report from the BC Coroners Service here.