Drug overdose deaths are down by 24 per cent between April last year and this April, but still B-C’s Coroner says 182 people died.
Fentanyl remains the primary killer, with the drug detected in 82 per cent of test results for those who died so far this year.
The coroner’s service says nearly half of those who overdosed were between the ages of 30 and 49.
The latest figures lift the number of deaths since the public health emergency was declared eight years ago to 14-thousand 582 people.
A COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at a Victoria area hospital. Island Health says in a statement the outbreak was declared Thursday at the centre unit of Saanich Peninsula Hospital, with 15 patients infected and all experiencing mild illness.
Canada Post, the primary postal operator in the country, has issued a new stamp celebrating the arrival of Diwali, the festival of lights observed by Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and other communities across the world. The stamp, which was released in a special booklet of six, costing CA$ 5.52, is available for purchase at post offices across the country.
Brampton-based Ste Louise Outreach Centre of Peel said it cannot provide enough food and other supplies to its customers as the number of foreign students turning up at the outlet has been soaring since September, the CBC news channel reported. A food bank is a charitable organisation that collects safe, nutritious food, and redistributes it to individuals and families experiencing food insecurity.
The City of Surrey says its bylaw officers seized a record 345-thousand dollars worth of fireworks over the last three weeks. Mayor Brenda Locke says the work sends a strong message that illegal fireworks will not be tolerated in Surrey.
Remembrance Day services will be staged across British Columbia tomorrow, but wild weather hitting the south coast may test the resolve of attendees. A weather front bringing heavy rain and winds of up to 90 kilometres an hour is forecast to cross the coast this evening, and although the winds could ease in time for services tomorrow morning, soaking rain is expected across the Lower Mainland, including Vancouver.
Police say a man and his 11-year-old son were intentionally shot and killed in a vehicle in Edmonton on Thursday. They identified the father as 41-year-old Harpreet Uppal, a high-level gang member involved in the drug trade. Police did not identify the boy.