More B.C. residents drowning in recent years: report

A new report from the BC Coroners Service says more people in B.C. have been dying as a result of accidental drownings in the past few years.

Data shows that 86 people died from drowning in 2022, which is higher than the ten-year average for the province — 76.

However, the 86 deaths in 2022 closely align with numbers from 2020 and 2021, when 87 and 80 people lost their lives as a result of drowning.

In comparison, 2017, 2018, and 2019 saw 71, 73, and 68 drownings, respectively.

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Looking deeper, the BC Coroners Service found that the majority of drowning victims are men or at least 50 years old — although the 19-29 age group represented a large portion of the year’s drowning deaths as well.

The service says that the Fraser River saw the most drownings of any body of water in the province between 2012 and 2022, with 53 people losing their lives in the nearly 1,400-kilometre-long river. Meanwhile, B.C.’s Interior region accounted for 32 per cent of the province’s drowning deaths over the ten-year period.

The most common causes of drowning found in the report were; boating, swimming, and falling into the water.

The BC Coroners Service notes that alcohol and drugs have been “identified as contributory factors” and explain that was the case in 38 per cent of drowning deaths between 2012 and 2020, especially in those between the ages of 30 and 39.

It notes that alcohol and drug data related to drowning deaths weren’t available as of yet.

Other causes of drowning in B.C. included bathing, transport, occupational incidents, and some that have been classified as “other/unknown.”

With files from Michael Williams