The Addiction Crisis in Coquitlam

Coquitlam sits within the Fraser Health region, which recorded 533 toxic drug deaths in 2025 — the highest absolute count of any BC health authority. No city-level count is published separately for Coquitlam, but the community has been directly affected: Fraser Health issued a toxic drug alert for Coquitlam on May 2, 2025, warning of a dangerous supply containing xylazine (Tranq), nifoxipam (a benzodiazepine analog), and fentanyl — a combination that does not fully respond to naloxone. Homelessness in the Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody) rose 86 percent over three years, far outpacing the 32 percent increase in Greater Vancouver. Both the Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam mayors have publicly called for expanded addiction and mental health treatment, with Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart stating that "mental illness is the only illness for which a person can die because of an inability to seek treatment." A Surrey RCMP operation in November 2024 — among the largest in that detachment's history — included search locations in Coquitlam, seizing cocaine, MDMA, methamphetamine, and fentanyl.

Canada recorded approximately 7,560 apparent opioid toxicity deaths in 2023 (PHAC), and a total of 56,631 opioid deaths between January 2016 and December 2025. Nationally, deaths dropped roughly 23 percent in 2025 to about 5,630 — the largest single-year decline since the crisis began. British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario together account for approximately 78 percent of all Canadian opioid deaths. BC's death rate per capita remains among the highest in the country, though its downward trend in 2024 and 2025 offers cautious optimism. The national picture reflects the same drivers as Coquitlam: a fentanyl-dominant, increasingly adulterated unregulated supply; housing and poverty; insufficient treatment capacity; and structural barriers for marginalized populations including Indigenous peoples.

01. What is happening in Coquitlam

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

02. A crisis that did not start this month

British Columbia has been in a public health emergency over toxic drug deaths since April 2016, with more than 18,000 deaths recorded in the decade since. After peaking, deaths fell 13 percent in 2024 to 2,253 — the lowest in four years — and dropped a further 21 percent in 2025 to approximately 1,826. Despite this progress, BC still accounts for a disproportionate share of Canada's opioid deaths. Fentanyl was detected in 78 percent of toxicological tests in 2024. The drug supply has grown more complex and dangerous, with veterinary sedatives like medetomidine and xylazine (Tranq) and benzodiazepine analogs increasingly mixed with opioids, blunting the effectiveness of naloxone. BC's three-year drug decriminalization pilot expired January 31, 2026 and was not renewed. The Fraser Health authority, which covers Coquitlam, had 533 deaths in 2025 and more than 5,600 deaths over the decade — while maintaining the lowest death rate among BC's health authorities. Men aged 30–59 account for roughly 77 percent of victims; trades and transport workers represent nearly 30 percent of 2025 deaths. Indigenous people and people of South Asian descent are disproportionately represented.

03. Why is it getting worse?

The toxic drug crisis in Coquitlam and the broader Fraser Health region is driven by several converging factors. The unregulated drug supply is the primary cause: fentanyl is present in 78 percent of samples, and the supply has grown more complex with adulterants like xylazine (Tranq), medetomidine (a veterinary sedative), and benzodiazepine analogs that do not respond to naloxone, making overdoses harder to reverse. Rapidly rising homelessness in the Tri-Cities (up 86 percent in three years) concentrates risk among people with fewest social supports. The population most affected is men aged 30–59, particularly those in trades and transport — workers who may use substances to manage physical pain or occupational stress and who face stigma accessing treatment. Indigenous people and people of South Asian descent are disproportionately affected, pointing to systemic barriers in culturally safe care. BC's drug decriminalization pilot, which ran from January 2023 to January 2026, has now expired and not been renewed, removing a harm reduction pathway. Treatment capacity gaps remain significant, with long wait times for opioid agonist therapy and residential treatment. Municipal leaders in Coquitlam have publicly acknowledged that the current system fails people who cannot seek help voluntarily, while public health experts caution that involuntary treatment alone lacks evidence of effectiveness without accompanying housing-first and wraparound supports.

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:

• A decade of toxic drug poisonings: new report from Fraser Health's Chief Medical Health Officer highlights progress and the work still aheadFraser Health · June 2026
• Toxic drug alert issued in CoquitlamTri-Cities Dispatch · May 2, 2025
• Why were toxic drug deaths in B.C. down 21% in 2025?CBC News · 2026
• Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam mayors back expansion of involuntary mental health and addiction treatment; experts question policyTri-Cities Dispatch · 2024
• Drug deaths in B.C. dropped 13 per cent in 2024, hitting four-year lowVictoria Times Colonist · 2025
• B.C. toxic drug overdose deaths down 10% in January 2026, coroner saysCBC News · 2026