New data from the BC Coroners Service shows 14 people died in the Northern Health area to unregulated drugs in January.
Three were from the northwest region which equated to four deaths per 100,000 people.
Those numbers are up compared to a year ago when the health authority recorded 11 deaths, two of those from the northwest.
While the health authority had the least number of deaths in the province that month, it had the highest rate per 100,000 people at almost 58.
Provincially, 150 people died in January 2026 to unregulated drugs, a ten per cent decrease compared to a year prior when 167 deaths were recorded.
The province added about three-quarters of the lives lost that month were between the 30 and 59, and 80 per cent were male.
About eight in every 10 tests returned a positive result for fentanyl and its analogues.
A full summary can be found here.
Something going on in the Bulkley Valley Lakes District you think people should know about?
Send us a news tip by emailing pgnews@vistaradio.ca.
