Fentanyl fuels record homeless deaths in Oregon's Multnomah County, home
to Portland
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 [December 21, 2024]
By CLAIRE RUSH
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Fentanyl fueled a record number of homeless deaths
last year in Oregon's Multnomah County, home to Portland, according to
an annual county report released Friday that officials described as
showing the peak of the fentanyl crisis in the area.
The report found that 456 homeless people died in the county in 2023 —
the highest number on record and a 45% jump compared to 2022. Last
year's deaths included 282 from unintentional drug overdose — more than
double the previous year — with fentanyl contributing to 89% of those
fatalities.
The increase in fentanyl-related deaths among homeless people mirrors
national trends, the county said in a news release, and reflects the
spread of the substance in recent years from the East Coast across the
Western U.S. In 2017, fentanyl was recorded as contributing to the death
of one homeless person in the county; by 2023, that number had reached
251.
“The devastating toll fentanyl is taking on our community is starkly
apparent in this report and it is heartbreaking,” Multnomah County Chair
Jessica Vega Pederson said in the news release. “This is a moment for
our community to grieve alongside more than 450 families who lost loved
ones in 2023 and to continue providing and fighting for more behavioral
health, supportive housing and other resources to respond.”
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Contents of a tent are seen in bags as workers dismantle the tent
after Portland police detained the person residing there on Friday,
June 28, 2024, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
 Methamphetamine also contributed to
81% of 2023 homeless overdose deaths.
Multnomah County Health Officer Richard Bruno said the report “hits
close to the heart,” as many of the people who died were patients
that he cared for in clinic. But he added that he remained
optimistic about the future, following a local and state emergency
declaration to address the fentanyl crisis.
“As we are seeing fentanyl overdose deaths decreasing in 2024, we
are hopeful that future reports will hold much lower numbers,” he
said in the news release.
Fourteen deaths were due to homicide, and 26 deaths were attributed
to suicide. Twenty-two deaths were transportation-related, with the
report noting that homeless people last year were 58 times more
likely to die from a transportation-related injury compared to the
county's general population.
There were no deaths due to heat and one due to cold exposure,
according to the report.
The average age at death was 46 years, roughly 30 years younger than
the national life expectancy at birth.
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