16 ECSTASY DEATHS PROBED IN B.C.

New Compound Believed To Be Five Times More Toxic

B.C. officials are investigating 16 deaths after ecstasy laced with a
toxic chemical was linked to five Alberta deaths and at least one in
this province.

B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall said Thursday when
health officials learned of the Alberta incidents, they retested
samples to see if paramethoxymethamphetamine (PMMA) was included in
ecstasy (MDMA) tablets taken by three people who have died since late November.

"We have one confirmed case in B.C. We've only been testing for it
recently," said Kendall.

"There are indications there could be a couple of other samples that
have come up with PMMA, as well, but the coroners office is doing a
retrospective review to look at other cases to see if this is a new
phenomenon or whether it was present in MDMA before."

Since much of Calgary's ecstasy comes from the Lower Mainland, there
may be a link between the two regions, one that law enforcement and
health professionals are checking.

Sixteen B.C. ecstasy deaths from 2011 are now under review.

The B.C. Coroners Service said it would address questions regarding
the review today.

The new compound is believed to be five times more toxic than
traditional ecstasy, health officials said. And, because it can take
longer for its effects to be felt, users sometimes take more ecstasy
to feel high.

Calgary police said they are consulting with B.C. law enforcement,
and health agencies and poison centres across Canada.

"Generally speaking, most of the ecstasy we get in town is coming
from the Lower Mainland," said Det. Doug Hudacin of the Calgary
police drug unit. "If it's happening in Calgary, it's logical to
assume it's happening somewhere else."

Investigators are also coordinating with Health Canada labs on the
testing of drugs.

"We're also working with the Health Canada labs to see what they are
finding in tablets. . They do all of our testing and [they're)] going
back through their records," Hudacin said.

The spate of Calgary ecstasy deaths began in November when Alex
Kristof, 16, overdosed. His death was followed by those of Daniel
Dahl, 18, then Robert Harding, 25.

Also in Calgary, a 29-year-old and a 31-year-old died after ingesting
what they thought was ecstasy but later turned out to contain PMMA.

A 17-year-old girl from Abbotsford died in late December, followed by
a 22-year-old woman from Vancouver at the beginning of January.
Another 22-year-old Vancouver woman who was hospitalized after taking
ecstasy on New Year's Eve died Friday, while a 24-year-old Abbotsford
woman who took the drug Jan. 2 remains in critical condition.

Toxicology results typically take between two and three weeks in
B.C., where there is only one toxicology lab used by the B.C.
Coroners Service. The coroners service has reported 10 to 24
ecstasy-related deaths per year from 2007 to 2010, Kendall said.