Another 11 people in Kamloops lost their lives to the toxic drug crisis in the months of May and June this year.

New preliminary data released by the BC Coroners Service shows a total of 45 toxic drug deaths in Kamloops in the first six months of the year, putting the city on pace for 90 this year.

Across B.C., the Coroners say there were 181 and 185 people who died of a toxic drug poisoning in May and June, taking the total on the year to 1,158 people.

“People are continuing to lose their loved ones in communities across B.C. at a tragic rate,” Acting Chief Coroner, John McNamee, said.

“Even as the figures reflect a 9 per cent decrease in the number of deaths reported to the coroners service during the first six months of this year from 2023, the number of lives lost is still significant.”

The Coroners say nearly half of the people who died in May and June were between the ages of 30 and 49. While men account for 72 per cent of deaths so far in 2024, the rate of deaths among women is on the rise, accounting for 28 per cent in 2024.

As has been the case for years, fentanyl continues to be the driver of unregulated drug-toxicity deaths. The Coroners say it was detected in 82 per cent of expedited toxicological tests conducted so far in 2024.

You can find more information from the BC Coroners Service here.