174 more lives lost to illicit drug toxicity in February, coroner reports

More than 170 people died from illicit drug toxicity across B.C. during the month of February, marking a small drop from the month of January but pushing the total number of deaths over the past six years past 9,400.

Preliminary data released by the B.C. Coroners Service on Tuesday said 174 people died in February, down from 208 in January. February was the 17th straight month during which more than 150 people died due to toxic drugs.

The grim figures come as B.C. approaches six years since declaring a public heath emergency over the opioid crisis in April 2016.

"We are continuing to lose members of our communities at an unprecedented and terrifying rate," chief coroner Lisa Lapointe said in a statement.

"The deaths of another 174 B.C. residents, so many of them young and middle-aged men with years of life ahead of them, is yet another reminder that urgent action is needed on a provincewide scale. I extend my deepest sympathy to the many families, friends and communities who are grieving the loss of a loved one."

Nearly three-quarters of those who have died from illicit drugs this year were between 30 and 59 years old. Seventy-eight per cent were men, data showed. Most people continue to die indoors.

Lapointe has repeated the need for a safer drug supply, as many advocates, academics and health experts have been doing since the crisis began.

According to preliminary post mortem toxicology tests, the illicit drug supply is extremely volatile, with the predominant substance of fentanyl being found in higher and higher concentrations, according to the coroners' service.

Etizolam was detected in 41 per cent of expedited testing between July 2020 and February 2022. An analogue of benzodiazapine, etizolam is a strong sedative that cannot be reversed by naloxone, presenting a significant life-saving challenge to first responders.

No deaths have been reported at supervised consumption or drug overdose prevention sites and there is no indication that prescribed safe supply contributes to overdose deaths.

Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson offered her sympathies in a statement Tuesday, and said she would comment further in a housing announcement she is expected to deliver later in the day.

"Complex-care housing provides support for our communities' most vulnerable people living with mental-health and substance-use challenges," she said.

In 2021, a total of 2,224 illicit-drug deaths were recorded, making it the deadliest year to date.