The province has announced it will open several “pop-up” overdose prevention sites, including three in Victoria, to try stem the number of deaths caused by illicit drugs as B.C. grapples with an unprecedented opioid crisis.

Health Minister Terry Lake said the increasing number of overdose deaths has prompted the unusual move of opening prevention sites at overdose hot spots in Vancouver, Surrey and Victoria.

“We are seeing an alarming increase in illicit drug overdose deaths and action is required at all levels to saves lives,” Lake said in a release. “The overdose prevention sites will ensure that people have a place where they can be safely monitored and treated immediately if they overdose.”

Two of the temporary sites will open in Victoria next week at Our Place Society on Pandora Avenue and Johnson Street Community, formerly Central Care Home, which houses many of the campers who came from the now-defunct tent city. While the overdose prevention site at Our Place will be open to the public, the Johnson Street location will be available for residents only.

In Vancouver, Lake said two sites in the Downtown Eastside would open immediately.

More sites will open later in the month including two in Surrey, more in the DTES and another in Victoria’s Rock Bay.

Lake said the locations of all sites were identified as areas with high numbers of overdoses that require an immediate response.

Victoria, unlike the DTES, does not yet have a year-round supervised consumption site like Insite, but Island Health has proposed three locations for the harm reduction service.

Lake said teams of trained staff will operate the site and monitor drug users with naloxone, an overdose-reversing drug that has been credited with saving lives amid the crisis.

The announcement comes as temperatures plunge across B.C.’s South Coast.

B.C.’s top doctor says the combination of cold weather and the overdose crisis forced it to look at new solutions, albeit temporary ones.

“With the onset of colder weather, the increased risk of death and brain damage from a combination of overdose and hypothermia has challenged us to explore additional options for overdose prevention that do not breach the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act while we wait for Health Canada approval of supervised consumption services,” said Dr. Perry Kendall.

Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps said the sites were the result of a coordinated effort to support drug users and reduce public use.

“By working together with community partners and health authorities, we were able to make these sites a reality in a short timeframe,” said Helps.

There were 622 illicit drug overdose deaths in the province from January through October of this year – a 56.7 per cent increase over the same period last year, according to the BC Coroners Service.