Coroner reports significant increase of fentanyl-detected overdose deaths in Castlegar, Nelson, Trail
By Castlegar Source
Of the 55 fentanyl-detected overdose deaths recorded in the past two-and-a-quarter years in the Interior Region, two have been in Castlegar, one in Nelson, and one in Trail, according to a report released today by the BC Coroner Service (the data is from Jan.1, 2014 to April 30, 2016).
In the two years prior, 2012 and 2013, there had been no fentanyl-detected overdoses in the tri-city area at all.
“With fentanyl-detected overdoses in particular and with illicit drugs in general, what we’ve seen is a reasonably rapid spread (of illicit drug overdoses) to the Interior and to Vancouver Island,” said Coroner Barb McLintock. “While the raw numbers are still much greater in the Lower Mainland, the places where it has been increasing the most rapidly are very much the Interior and on Vancouver Island.”
She said mixtures of drugs – fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and crystal meth, along with alcohol and prescription medications, are often at work.
“A hugely high proportion (of overdoses) are caused by some mixture of these,” she said, adding that the statistics belie a widespread misconception that teenagers are at the greatest risk. “We’re not finding this often in teenagers or novice/occasional drug users. The majority are habitual users – although not all, nothing is 100-per-cent with this sort of situation.”
The report released this morning reads as follows:
From January through May 2016, there were 308 accidental illicit drug overdose deaths in British Columbia. This is a 75-per-cent increase over the number of deaths occurring during the same period in 2015 (176).
Preliminary data suggests that the proportion of illicit drug overdose deaths in which fentanyl was detected (alone or in combination with other drugs) increased to approximately 56 per cent in the first four months of 2016. In previous years, the proportion was:
* 2012 = 5%
* 2013 = 15%
* 2014 = 25%
* 2015 = 31%
From January through May 2016, an average of 61.6 apparent illicit drug overdose deaths occurred each month. In 2015, the average number of illicit drug overdose deaths per month was 40.3.
In January 2016, there were 77 apparent illicit drug overdose deaths. This is the largest number of deaths in a single month for the examined period.
The 42 apparent illicit drug overdose deaths that occurred in May 2016 are fewer than occurred in each of the previous four months and are consistent with deaths in the same month in both 2014 and 2015 (41 and 42).
The full reports can be viewed at: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/public-safety/death-investigation/statistical-reports
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