More people have died of illicit drug overdose in the first half of 2022 than in any other year in B.C.

A just-released report from British Columbia's coroners shows that more people have died from illicit drug overdose in the first six months of 2022 than in any other year in the province.

A just-released report from British Columbia's coroners shows that more people have died from illicit drug overdose in the first six months of 2022 than in any other year in the province.

Preliminary data made public Tuesday shows that 1,095 people died between Jan. 1 and June 30, a toll that is likely to grow as death investigations conclude.

That's two dozen more people than at this time one year ago. It's 958 more people than at this time 10 years ago.

And that's despite the fact that the monthly death toll was lower in March, April and June than it was in the same months in 2021.

According to the BC Coroners Service, 146 people died of suspected illicit drug toxicity in June 2022 – a 17 per cent decrease year-over-year, and 26 per cent fewer people than in May 2022.

While that number is lower than B.C. has seen at times in the years-long opioid crisis, it's still high, equating to an average of nearly five people dying from the province's toxic street drug supply every day of that month.

The overdoses included in the coroners' monthly report are those involving heroin, cocaine, MDMA, methamphetamine, illicit fentanyl and other street drugs, as well as medications obtained or purchased without a prescription and combinations of those drugs with prescribed medications.