Aug. 31 marks International Overdose Awareness Day, a solemn occasion to reflect on those lost, with 6.2 people dying from toxic drugs every day in B.C. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

together we can

International Overdose Awareness Day marks solemn time of remembrance in Nanaimo

Aug 31, 2024 | 6:52 AM

NANAIMO — Saturday marks a day to remember those who have been lost to toxic drug poisonings and reflect on how we can do better to help those currently battling addiction.

International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) is held annually on the last day of August, with events taking place across Nanaimo and the Oceanside area commemorating the solemn occasion.

Coordinator of the Oceanside Community Action team Jamie Baird said presentations are planned for Saturday at the Parksville Community Park starting at 4 p.m., with speakers planning to shed light on the toxic drug crisis.

“Possibly people are not aware about who’s dying in this…It’s not the unfortunate people that you see in the downtown eastside in Vancouver, it’s mostly men between the ages of 11 and 59, and they die alone in their own home.”

According to the BC Corners Service’s latest report, 69 per cent of overdose deaths so far this year were in people between the ages of 30-59, with 73 per cent of them male, with 81 per cent occurring indoors.

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The Parksville event will include harm reduction education, with the candlelight vigil starting at 7 p.m.

Baird said it’s all about learning what community members do at all levels of their community to help save lives.

“Educate ourselves, educate other people, be aware of the resources and facilities that are available. Mental health and substance use, they’re all interrelated…poverty and homelessness and all of these things are so related that we have to work on many many fronts, but ultimately it’s to keep people from dying.”

They’re asking attendees to bring framed photos of their lost loved ones to display on their purple memorial chairs.

In the Harbour City, the Nanaimo Community Action Team (NCAT) has been engaging in their ‘Purple Chair Campaign’ since the end of July, where purple chairs are scattered across the community representing a life lost to an overdose.

The theme for this year is ‘Together We Can’, reflecting on our collective commitment to addressing the overdose crisis through education, compassion, and proactive community engagement,” according to the IOAD website.

Locals are invited to join NCAT at Diana Krall Plaza from noon until 3 p.m., where 500 purple chairs are expected to be on display.

Participants are encouraged to bring items, photos, or messages to place on the chairs to honour and remember those lost and those who continue to struggle with addiction.

Island Health has a digital memory wall available here, a chance to share memories and photos honouring those lost, and it will be active until Sept. 20.

Support services for mental health, substance use, and grief services are available to Island Health residents by calling the Mental Health and Substances Use Service Link at 1-888-885-8824, or by going to HelpStartsHere.gov.bc.ca.

Increasing fatalities
The B.C Coroners Service said nine people lost their lives in Nanaimo in July from toxic drugs, with 192 people dying province-wide, equating to 6.2 deaths per day.

It’s a 15 per cent drop compared to July 2023, when 226 people died.

So far this year, toxic drugs have claimed the lives of 62 people in the greater Nanaimo area, and 1,365 people province-wide, representing a nine per cent decrease from the first seven months of 2023.

A total of 53 people have died from toxic drugs in Nanaimo this year, good for sixth highest in the province, and tying the total number of deaths in all of 2021.

The first half of 2024 claimed the lives of 245 across the Island Health region, with a higher rate of deaths compared to the rest of the province for the last two years.

The greater Victoria area is regularly in the top three for the highest number of deaths, following Surrey and Vancouver.

Fentanyl continues to be the most common drug found in the system of those who died of an overdose, being present in 84 per cent of cases.

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