More lives lost to toxic drugs in Vernon and Kelowna

Illicit drugs were responsible for an estimated three deaths in Vernon this past September.

Preliminary data from the B.C. Coroners Service identified the suspected overdose deaths for Greater Vernon, bringing the year-to-date total to 30.

The highest annual overdose death toll for Vernon was 42 in 2021.

Kelowna has seen a total of 64 fatalities in the first nine months of 2022 after recording 10 in September, while Kamloops saw four suspected drug deaths, to bring its year-to-date total to 66.

The local deaths were part of 33 in the Interior and 171 recorded throughout B.C.

As of September, there have been 284 deaths linked to drugs in the Interior and 1,644 in the province, the largest number ever recorded for the first nine months of a calendar year.

The highest annual total for overdose deaths in the Interior was 375 in 2021, while the provincial high was 2,267 deaths that same year.

“British Columbians are continuing to suffer the tragic effects of a toxic and volatile drug supply, with almost six members of our communities dying each day,” Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe said.

“Both those who use drugs occasionally and those who are substance-dependent are at risk of sudden death from the unpredictable illicit market. Individuals who have been abstinent for a period of time or those who normally use stimulants are at increased risk. Their opioid tolerance is low and the prevalence of fentanyl in the illicit supply is high.”

September was the 24th consecutive month on record in which there have been at least 150 deaths in B.C. suspected to be caused by drug toxicity.

The Coroner’s Service data shows men have made up 78.6 per cent of the deaths this year.

The report stated 55.6 per cent of all overdose deaths in B.C. have occurred inside private residences. In the Interior, 61.3 per cent of deaths linked to illicit drug toxicity occurred in a private residence.

To date, no deaths have been reported at supervised consumption of overdose prevention sites, and post-mortem toxicology results show no deaths have been linked to prescribed safe supply.

Illicit drug toxicity is the leading cause of unnatural death in B.C. Since the public health emergency was first declared in April of 2016, at least 10,5050 British Columbians have died due to suspected overdoses.