B.C.’s toxic drug deaths fall to pre-pandemic levels, with 109 deaths in May

Preliminary data from May show the number of suspected toxic drug deaths in British Columbia fell to its lowest level since early 2020. 

The B.C. Coroners Service reported 109 people died in May from suspected unregulated drug toxicity.

The Public Safety Ministry said it was the lowest number of monthly drug deaths since February 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic was declared.

Toxic drug deaths peaked in B.C. in 2023, when the province reported 2,593 deaths. 

There were 630 deaths reported between January and May this year, compared to 775 during the same time period in 2025.

The coroners service said 68 per cent of drug toxicity deaths this year were among people between 30 to 59 years old, and more than  three quarters of those who died were male. 

In more than 80 per cent of cases, people died inside private residences, supportive housing, shelters or other indoor locations, while 18 per cent of overdoses happened outdoors. 

Fluorofentanyl, a potent fentanyl analogue, was the most commonly detected drug, followed by cocaine, fentanyl and meth.  

The coroner’s service notes the numbers could change as more toxicological results are received and investigations conclude.