Province recorded increase in Okanagan unhoused deaths in 2023

The B.C. Coroner Service said 42 people experiencing homelessness in the Okanagan lost their lives in 2023.

The province did not provide a breakdown for specific communities, but the area where the deaths were recorded spanned from Vernon and Kelowna north to Enderby and south to Osoyoos.

The 42 deaths were part of 86 recorded in the Southern Interior, and 458 in all of British Columbia.

The province’s data showed those figures were up from 2022, which saw 35 unhoused deaths in the Okanagan, 77 in the Interior, and 373 in the entire province.

“The data speaks to the tragic reality of the struggles many face in our communities throughout B.C.,” said Dr. Jatinder Baidwan, B.C.’s chief coroner.

“During the period studied, between 2016 and 2023, the deaths of 1,940 people were reported to the BC Coroners Service, identified as experiencing homelessness.”

The Coroner’s Service stated more than half of the deaths recorded through B.C. were people between the ages of 30 and 49, and that 79 per cent of them were male.

The data showed 419 of the deaths across the province were classified as accidental, and 394 of the total were considered accidential deaths linked to unregulated drug toxicity.

The Coroner’s Service added 28 per cent of the deaths were recorded in the winter, while 27 per cent occurred in the spring.