The BC Coroners Service says toxic drugs were responsible for at least 192 deaths in March, bringing the total number in the first three months this year to 572, with fentanyl involved in 85 per cent of the deaths.
More than two-thirds of the victims were between 30 to 59 years old. Nearly three-quarters were male, but the coroners service notes the death rate among females is increasing each year.
In 2024, 84 per cent of unregulated drug deaths occurred inside private homes, social and supportive housing, single-room occupancy buildings, shelters, hostels and other indoor locations. Fifteen per cent were reported to be outside in vehicles, sidewalks, streets or parks.
On Vancouver Island, 43 people died of drug overdoses in March and 128 have died from overdoses in the first three months of this year.
Nanaimo is among the top three cities in BC for lives lost to toxic drugs in 2024.
Since the province declared a public-health emergency eight years ago, at least 14,400 people have lost their lives to toxic drugs.
