According to the B.C. Coroners Service latest numbers, 14 deaths caused by toxic drugs were reported in Prince George during February and March.
There have been 21 deaths in Prince George so far in 2023.
There’s been 33 unregulated drug deaths throughout Northern Health in the last two months, and 46 fatalities so far this year.
Northern Health has the highest unregulated drug death rate of all the health authorities at 60 per 100,000 people which is slightly ahead of Vancouver Coastal at 59.4.
However, 59 per cent of all toxic drug deaths have been reported in the Vancouver Coastal (190) and Fraser Health (161) regions.
Overall, the rate in BC is 44 deaths per 100,000 individuals.
Provincewide at least 374 deaths believed to be caused by toxic drugs were reported to the BC Coroners Service in February (177) and March (197), which equates to an average of 6.4 lives lost per day.
It has now been more than seven years since the declaration of a public-health emergency, and the 596 lives lost between January and March is the second-highest total ever recorded in the first three months of a calendar year, behind only 2022 (599 lives lost).
"On April 14, we once again observed the anniversary of the longest public-health emergency in our province's history," said Lisa Lapointe, chief coroner.
"Since the emergency was first declared, more than 11,000 people have lost their lives due to the unregulated drug supply. This is a crisis of incomprehensible scale, and I extend my deepest condolences to everyone who has experienced the loss of someone they loved."
Unregulated drug toxicity continues to be the leading cause of unnatural death in British Columbia, accounting for more deaths than homicides, suicides, motor vehicle incidents, drownings and fire-related deaths combined.
Last year, Northern Health reported 183 drug poisoning deaths, with 84 of those occurring in Prince George, both of which were record highs.
