Coroner says 2017 was 'most tragic year ever' for overdose deaths in B.C.

The B.C. Coroners Service says more than 1,400 people died of an illicit drug overdose in the province in 2017, making it "the most tragic year ever," according to the chief coroner.

Lisa Lapointe said the preliminary total for the year is at 1,422 — an increase of 43 per cent from 2016 — but that figure will grow as test results continue to come in.

Approximately 81 per cent of suspected deaths last year involved the opioid fentanyl. Lapointe said it was often combined with other illicit drugs — most often heroin, cocaine or methamphetamines.

The B.C. Coroners Service releases the number of suspected illicit overdose deaths in 2017 on Wednesday. (Rafferty Baker/CBC)

Nearly 90 per cent of people who died were alone inside a home when they suffered an overdose. Four out of five were men, and more than half of all victims were between the ages of 30 and 49.

Vancouver saw the highest number of deadly overdoses last year, followed by Surrey and Victoria.

The coroners service said nobody died at any supervised consumption site or at any of the drug overdose prevention sites.

Naloxone temporarily blocks the effects of an opioid overdose to save lives. (Sam Colbert/CBC)

The number of deaths in 2017 had surpassed the 2016 record of 923 by October.

The provincial health crisis, first declared in 2016, has continued into 2018: nine deaths were reported over five days in the B.C. Interior last week.

Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall, speaking on his last day before retirement, said the numbers show that the province is still in the middle of an "epidemic of poisoning deaths."​

Indigenous people in B.C. were also disproportionately affected by the crisis in 2017 — Dr. Patricia Daly said that even though they represent 3.4 per cent of B.C.'s total population, they accounted for 10 per cent of all illicit overdose deaths in the province last year.

'Cautiously optimistic'

However, Daly — who will replace Kendall — said there is a glimmer of hope in the numbers.

Statistics show a "significant decrease" in deaths over the last four months of 2017: an average of 96 deaths per month from September to December, compared with the first eight months of the year when there were more than 129 deaths per month.

Daly said she's "cautiously optimistic" about the 25 per cent drop.

"Things are moving in a better direction ... but I'd say it's too early to say it's an ongoing downward trend," she said Wednesday.

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