B.C. sets new record with 1,455 drug deaths in 1st 7 months of 2023 – CBC
July marks 13th consecutive month when more than 190 residents have died due to toxic drugs
Aug 29, 2023
Another 198 British Columbians died from toxic drugs in July, according to data released Tuesday by the B.C. Coroners Service, bringing the death toll in the first seven months of the year to 1,455.
The coroners service said the 1,455 deaths from January to July are the most ever reported in the first seven months of the year since a public health emergency over drug poisoning deaths in the province was declared in 2016.
“They are our friends and our neighbours, and it’s just so tragic that we’re losing so many important people that are important to us,” Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe told Gloria Macarenko, the host of CBC’s On The Coast.
It puts the province on pace to potentially exceed the 2,383 deaths recorded last year. A total of 12,739 people in the province have died from drug overdoses in those seven years.
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/toxic-drug-deaths-july-2023-1.6950922
