The B.C. Coroners Service says more than 1,100 people have died from suspected drug overdose deaths so far this year.
It says the latest preliminary data indicates there were 80 suspected overdose deaths in September, up 31 per cent from the same month last year.
Fentanyl was detected in more than 80 per cent of the deaths in the first nine months of the year, up nearly 150 per cent from the same period in 2016, while the even more deadly opioid carfentanil was detected in 37 deaths between June and September.
The service adds Vancouver Coastal Health has the highest rate of illicit drug overdose deaths among all health authorities in the province.
