More than 300 British Columbians died of toxic overdoses in August and September, the BC Coroners Service says.
In the latest update since the summer, the BC Coroners said 187 people died in August and another 183 died in September. B.C. is still averaging about six deaths per day.
In total, at least 1,749 people have died from unregulated drug toxicity in the first nine months of the year.
The majority of deaths in 2024 continue to happen indoors, with 48 per cent in private residences and 32 per cent in other residences such as social and supportive housing, single-room occupancies, shelters and hotels. Nineteen per cent of deaths happened outside in vehicles, sidewalks, streets or parks.
BC Coroners Service said the data from the first nine months of the year is an eight-per-cent decrease from the first nine months of 2023 when there were 1,896 deaths.
Vancouver, Surrey and Greater Victoria continue to have the highest number of overdose deaths, with 45, 19 and 16, respectively.
Forty-eight per cent of unregulated drug deaths in September 2024 were people between the ages of of 30 and 49, while 1.1 per cent were people aged 18 and younger.
The rate of death among females increased 60 per cent from 2020. Twenty-six per cent of fatal overdoses were females in 2024.
Seventy-seven per cent of the deaths were among males in September, which is up compared to the 74 per cent of all deaths in 2024.
Fentanyl was detected in 82 per cent of the deaths, cocaine in 49 per cent, methamphetamine in 44 per cent, bromazolam in 36 per cent and hydromorphone in three per cent. Smoking continues to me the most common mode of consumption at 68 per cent, followed by nasal at 14 per cent, injection at 12 per cent and oral at five per cent.
