A new study examining data from the Ontario coroner’s office and other sources indicates opioid-related deaths in the province’s shelters more than tripled during the COVID-19 pandemic, when compared with a few years prior.

The study conducted by researchers from the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital and Public Health Ontario found there were 210 accidental opioid deaths in shelters between January 2018 and May 2022.