One person is dying every week from illicit drugs in Langley as the overdose crisis has only eased slightly, according to the latest numbers released by the B.C. Coroners Service.
As of the end of May, 22 people have died in Langley from toxic street drugs so far in 2023.
Provincewide, there were 176 suspected deaths from what the Coroners Service is now referring to as “unregulated drugs,” a 16 per cent decrease from the same month last year. That is down from April, when 218 people died in B.C.
Across B.C., about 5.7 people are dying per day, and by the end of may, the total deaths had risen to 1,018 across the province for the first five months of the year.
Most of the deaths were men – 77 per cent of all drug deaths so far this year – and the majority were in their 30s, 40s, or 50s.
About 46.9 per cent of deaths took place in private homes, and 29.7 per cent took place in other types of residences – which could mean homeless shelters, single-room occupancy hotels, motels, or other forms of shelter. Another 17.1 per cent took place outside.
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Fentanyl, a powerful prescription painkiller, has been detected in 85 per cent of all toxic drug deaths so far this year, although the Coroners Service report noted that data was preliminary as results come in.
In 2023, methamphetamines were present in 45 per cent of drugs deaths, cocaine in 44 per cent, and various prescription drugs were widely present, including flurofentanyl, bromazolam, methadone, and morphine.
Toxic drug deaths are now the leading cause of death for British Columbians aged 10 to 59.
Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, pointed largely to work the government is doing to prevent and treat youths with addiction.
“Just last week, our government opened 24 new youth substance-use treatment and recovery beds in Surrey and Vancouver so more young people can get the help they need,” Whiteside said in a statement.
She also noted the opening of Foundry centres in 35 communities across B.C. – one in Langley opened last year. There are 15 currently open, eight in development, and 12 more to come, Whiteside said, providing health care and mental health services to people aged 12 to 24.
Her comments were in response to the data on drug deaths among youths, but that data found that between 2017 and the end of 2022, there had been 142 drug deaths in youths 19 and under – 1.4 per cent of the total of 10,453.
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