New supervised drug-inhalation site to open in downtown Victoria

Island Health says the inhalation site will operate for 10 months while the health authority continues to search for a permanent location for inhalation drug users.

The temporary service will operate on city-owned land slated for redevelopment next year at 926 Pandora Ave.

Island Health says the supervised inhalation site will operate for 10 months while the health authority continues to search for a permanent location for inhalation drug users.

"Island Health has been searching for a permanent location for an inhalation-focused overdose prevention service in Victoria for over a year and has not been able to secure one," the health authority said in a statement Thursday. "The Pandora site has emerged as the only suitable location for a temporary solution."

Island Health says the publicly accessible site will open by mid-to late November, or sooner, pending completion of construction and staff recruitment.

"The toxic drug supply is killing people at unprecedented levels. We know that over half of people who use drugs prefer to consume drugs through inhalation or smoking," said B.C. Mental Health and Addictions Minister Sheila Malcolmson in the statement.

"We continue to add more witnessed inhalation sites because they save lives. The new temporary location in Victoria is an important part of our response to connect more people with life-saving harm reduction services where they can also access health and treatment programs."

The site will operate as a satellite of the nearby Harbour overdose prevention site, previously known as the Pandora Supervised Consumption Centre.

The Harbour, which has 10 drug-consumption booths, does not have space for supervised inhalation services or the venting required, according to Island Health.