One overdose death reported in northeast BC in February

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – One person died of a drug overdose in northeast BC in February, according to the latest BC Coroners Service report.

That’s a 75 per cent decrease from the four deaths reported in January.  It also shows Northern Health reported 19 drug overdose-related deaths in February, down from 21 the previous month.

Across B.C. in February, the BC Coroners Service reported 177 overdose deaths in total, a decrease of 12 per cent from January and 11 per cent compared to February of 2023.

“Behind each number was a person who loved and was loved, whose life was unfairly cut short,” said Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions.

“To the families and friends who have faced the unimaginable, and to the communities that have been pierced time and again by these tragedies, know that your grief is seen and shared.”

Northern Health has the highest overdose death rate so far in 2024, with 76.7 deaths per 100,000 people, followed by Island Health, with 54.3 deaths per 100,000 people. 

The overall rate for BC sits at 43.4 deaths per 100,000 for 2024.

The Fraser Health Authority has reported the most overdose deaths so far this year, with 99 in total, followed by the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority with 96. Northern Health has reported 40 deaths so far this year.

According to the report, the number of overdose deaths reported so far equates to about 6.1 deaths per day. Vancouver, Surrey and Nanaimo continue to report the highest number of overdoses by township.

The most common age groups to overdose are ages 30 to 39 and ages 40 to 49, with both groups accounting for 25 per cent of the deaths so far this year. Males make up 72 per cent of overdose deaths, the report says.

April 14th, 2024, will mark the eighth anniversary of the province declaring the opioid crisis a public health emergency.

“Our province’s strength is the people who live here, our empathy and our willingness to act,” Whiteside added. “I implore all British Columbians to never lose sight of this. This is more important now than ever before as we approach the sombre eighth anniversary of this crisis.”

The report states that there’s no indication that prescribed safe supply is contributing to drug deaths.