The Addiction Crisis in Burnaby

No Burnaby-specific overdose death count is publicly reported at the city level by the BC Coroners Service. Fraser Health Authority, which covers Burnaby, consistently records among the highest absolute death tolls in BC due to its large population. Burnaby is served by a range of harm reduction services including naloxone distribution, drug checking, and the Rapid Access to Addiction Care (RAAC) clinic. The BC Coroners Service does not publish Local Health Area breakdowns for Burnaby separately from the broader Fraser Health region in available public data.

Canada recorded approximately 7,560 apparent opioid toxicity deaths in 2023 (PHAC), making it one of the deadliest years on record nationally. In 2025, Canadian opioid deaths fell roughly 23% to an estimated 5,630 — described by Canada's Chief Medical Officer as cause for cautious optimism, though the crisis remains a national emergency. British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario together account for approximately 80% of all Canadian opioid deaths. Fentanyl and its analogues continue to dominate the illicit supply across the country.

01. What is happening in Burnaby

Note: City-specific data for Burnaby is limited. Figures reflect British Columbia-wide trends.

02. A crisis that did not start this month

British Columbia declared a public health emergency over the overdose crisis in April 2016 — now more than a decade old. The province recorded 2,511 toxic drug deaths in 2023, its highest annual toll ever. Deaths fell 13% in 2024 to 2,253, and fell a further 21% in 2025 to 1,826 — the first time since 2020 that annual deaths fell below 2,000. Despite the improvement, roughly five people still die every day in BC from toxic drugs. Fentanyl remains the dominant driver, detected in 69% of 2025 deaths. BC's three-year drug decriminalization pilot expired at the end of January 2026 without renewal. Over the decade since the emergency was declared, more than 18,000 British Columbians have died.

03. Why is it getting worse?

The BC overdose crisis is driven primarily by fentanyl and its analogues (including fluorofentanyl) contaminating the illicit drug supply, making it impossible for people who use drugs to know the potency of what they are consuming. Polysubstance toxicity — combinations of fentanyl with benzodiazepines, methamphetamine, and cocaine — sharply increases lethality. Structural drivers include chronic underfunding of addiction treatment, housing instability, social isolation, and poverty. The end of BC's drug decriminalization pilot in January 2026 has raised concerns among advocates that criminalization will push drug use further underground and reduce access to services. The recent decline in deaths is attributed to falling fentanyl concentrations in the supply, wider naloxone distribution, expanded overdose prevention sites, and a shift from injection to smoking as the predominant mode of use.

04. Where hope still lives

Communities across British Columbia are responding with naloxone distribution, harm reduction programs, and peer support networks. Every person trained in naloxone use is a potential life saved.

05. In the news

The reporting behind this page:

• B.C. sets grim record with 2,511 toxic drug deaths in 2023CBC News · 2024-01-18
• More than 1,800 people died from toxic drugs in 2025 in B.C.: coroners serviceCBC News · 2026-01-30
• Why were toxic drug deaths in B.C. down 21% in 2025?CBC News · 2026-02-05
• Drug deaths in B.C. dropped 13 per cent in 2024, hitting four-year lowVictoria Times Colonist · 2025-01-23
• Decade of death: With 18K lives lost, B.C. counts cost of 10-year drug emergencyGlobal News · 2026-04-14
• Burnaby RCMP seizes over 97 kilos of illicit drugs, $70,000 cash, one man arrestedRCMP BC · 2025-12-17