The opioid crisis continues to hold a deadly grip on Prince George.
As of the end of September, 35 people have lost their lives to illicit drugs this year, according to an update issued Tuesday by the B.C. Coroner, just three fewer than the total reached by the same point last year.
A record 58 such deaths were recorded in the city during 2020.
On a per capita basis, Prince George ranks 12th among B.C. communities with a rate of 31 deaths per 100,000 - that number as of the end of August. Only Central Okanagan (52) and Kamloops (49) have higher rates among Interior communities.
For Northern Health, the total stood at 97 deaths as of the end of September, with the Northern Interior Health Services Delivery Area accounting for 47, the Northwest HSDA for 30 and the Northeast HSDA for 20.
Province-wide, the total hit 1,534 deaths - a 24 per cent increase over the 1,240 deaths recorded between January and September last year.
In a statement, chief coroner Lisa Lapointe called the toll "heartbreaking."
Lapointe's office has warned of B.C.'s increasingly toxic and volatile illicit drug supply, with the powerful opioid fentanyl found in 84 per cent of deaths while the more toxic carfentanil is linked to 137 deaths this year, more than double the 65 recorded for all of 2020.
This is the sixth year of the public health emergency related to tainted drugs and Lapointe said deaths continue to soar.
"Urgent action on a number of fronts is required, including much broader access to safe supply, more readily available and efficient drug-checking services, and a shift from a law-enforcement focus to a health-centred approach," Lapointe said in the release.
- with files from Canadian Press
