The number of people dying from illicit drug overdoses continues to fall on Vancouver Island, but is up slightly province-wide.
The BC Coroners Service reports there were 79 suspected overdose deaths in August, up from 70 in July but down from 125 in August of 2018.
Fentanyl is still being detected in approximately 85 per cent of those deaths.
In Victoria, there were two fatal drug overdoses recorded in August, down from five in July and eleven in August of 2018.
Across Vancouver Island, there were eight fatal ODs in August compared with fourteen in July and 22 in August 2018.
The statistics correspond with an overall drop across the province so far in 2019 compared with last year.
The Coroner reports that there have been 690 fatal drug overdoses through the first eight months of 2019, compared with 1,037 over the same time period in 2018, a 33 per cent decrease.
On Vancouver Island, there were 166 fatal drug overdoses through August of 2018, there have been 104 so far in 2019. Victoria saw 68 in the first eight months of last year, compared with 35 in 2019.
No deaths have been reported at supervised consumption sites or drug overdose prevention sites in the province.
CHEK News
