METH TAKING A DEADLY TOLL AMONG USERS

VANCOUVER -- The number of British Columbians who have died with
methamphetamine in their systems has more than doubled in the past year --
and police warn there's every indication the grim toll will continue its
rapid rise.

B.C. Coroners Service statistics taken from toxicology tests show that 33
people died with the drug in their systems in 2004, compared to 15 in 2003,
nine in 2002, five in 2001 and three in 2000. Of the 33 deaths last year,
29 were men and four women.

Is there any reason to believe the number of victims will decline this year?

"Absolutely not," says RCMP Cpl. Scott Rintoul. "We are seeing an increase
in the use, and this drug is so deadly. You're not playing with something
benign. It's shocking."

Last year, Vancouver topped the province's fatality list with 12 deaths.

The numbers all point to a disturbing increase in methamphetamine use that
is supported both by official statistics and anecdotal evidence on the street.

Rintoul describes Greater Vancouver as the "crystal meth capital of Canada
. . . The availability is unreal. Is (it) a lot higher than we think?
Definitely."

One of the reasons for the increase is that meth is easy to obtain and is
relatively cheap compared with drugs like crack and cocaine. In the 15
years since it first appeared on the rave scene, crystal meth has
"completely taken over," says one user, an eight-year addict.

Crystal meth use is also on the rise across Canada, say experts. However,
communities across the country are battling back against the drug.

In Greater Vancouver, for instance, a local health authority plans to
release an anti-crystal meth video, Death By Jib, this week. It will be
available for viewing at health authority facilities and for teachers who
want to show it to their students.

Meanwhile in Saskatchewan, health and drug enforcement officials there are
trying to educate store owners on how to spot meth makers by what they buy.

Saskatchewan MP Dave Batters and MPs from Manitoba are lobbying Ottawa to
reclassify crystal meth a Schedule 1 drug -- like heroin and cocaine.

If Justice Minister Irwin Cotler moves on the request, those sentenced for
trafficking in crystal would face a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Toronto, Montreal and Halifax are struggling to deal with meth woes in
their street communities as it sweeps east across North America.

But Canada is still just playing catchup with the U.S.

National Clandestine Lab statistics list 525 meth-production sites busted
in 2004, 393 in Kentucky, and a staggering 1,018 in Missouri in 2004 alone.
Meth is known as the "state drug" of Arkansas and is a plague in Hawaii. In
Paris, Tex., meth is more prevalent than crack. Meth users are now the
fastest-growing segment of addicts looking for help in Atlanta.

The Center for the Study and Prevention of Substance Abuse at Nova
Southeastern University in Florida is tracking meth's boom in that state.
Crystal Meth Anonymous meetings in Chicago are now held five nights a week,
instead of just one.