150 toxic drug deaths in October as B.C.’s toll continues to decline
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VICTORIA – British Columbia’s coroner says 150 people died from unregulated toxic drugs in the province in October, as the number of fatalities continues to fall.
It’s the 13th consecutive month that year-on-year overdose deaths have dropped, with October’s toll 8 per cent down from the 163 deaths recorded in the same month last year.
However that is smaller than the 17 per cent fall in September and a 27 per cent fall in August.
A statement from the BC Coroners Service says the number of unregulated drug deaths in October equates to about 4.8 deaths per day and that people between the ages of 30 and 59 accounted for 70 of the deaths.
It says deaths among people aged 18 and younger increased from 17 in the first 10 months of 2024 to 21 in the same period this year.
The highest number of unregulated drug deaths recorded by the health authority so far in 2025 are in the Fraser and Vancouver Coastal health authorities, making up 56 per cent of all deaths.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 2, 2025