Campbell River is no stranger to the B.C. mental health and drug addiction crisis, now marking its seventh year.

The victims of the ongoing crisis have families living with the loss of lives and subsequent heartbreak.

Chantal Costaz knows what that is like. She lost her son Santos on June 24, 2022 to an overdose.

But adding to the heartbreak is the fact that Santos was in what was supposed to be a safe place. A decision had been made to have Santos arrested after an attempt to get him to a treatment centre in the Lower Mainland had run out of time.

SantosB次元官网网址� death in the RCMP lockup was the subject of a March 17 B.C. Independent Investigations Office (IIO) report. He was not identified in the report and while Chantal Costaz wants the community to know who her son was, she also wants to see changes to incarceration procedures and more resources for people suffering from mental health and addiction.

B次元官网网址淪antos was a bright kid. He had a futureB次元官网网址�he could have been many things,B次元官网网址� Chantal says in an interview with the Campbell River Mirror. B次元官网网址淪o many things could have been done to not have this happen, you know, and itB次元官网网址檚 done now. I canB次元官网网址檛 do anything about it but try and make change. So thatB次元官网网址檚 my goal.B次元官网网址�

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Chantal wrote a letter to the editor telling the community about her son, saying he was not just a nameless person in a report.

B次元官网网址淭his man did have a name, Santos. Santos had a family and friends who loved him. Santos was artistic, athletic, loved music, was fashion savvy and wanted to become a fashion designer and a rapper.B次元官网网址�

But, Chantal writes, B次元官网网址渉is struggle with mental health was bigger than him.B次元官网网址�

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Santos was taken into RCMP custody in an attempt to secure emergency help for him. A rare opening in Coquitlam, B.C.B次元官网网址檚 Red Fish Healing Centre for Mental Health and Addiction had just slipped out of SantosB次元官网网址� hands.

Chantal and their health team had been desperately searching all over Campbell River to find Santos because the space had suddenly become available.

But Santos was nowhere to be found.

Chantal had spent years trying to get Santos the help he needed. There had been many diagnoses but no solutions. Nothing seemed to be available to help him, she says.

In the last year of his life, his addiction seemed to get more and more difficult. Then he was able to get housing at QB次元官网网址檞axsem Place and was doing well for a while. But he was incapable of following the rules and got kicked out but was given a second chance to get back in.

B次元官网网址淗e was finally kicked out for the last time and back out on the streets,B次元官网网址� Chantal says.

The facility was not equipped for nor has the funding to deal with mental health, addiction issues or teach life skills, Chantal says.

Santos was then placed in Comox mental health twice and both times was released after three days because he was not psychotic. He did agree to go to a treatment centre and was accepted to the Red Fish Healing Centre for Mental Health and Addiction but there was a 9 to 12-month wait.

On June 21, 2022, the call came that there was a bed for him at Red Fish but he had to be there by June 23. Arrangements were made to get him there and Chantal tried to find him on the evening of the 22nd with the help of some outreach persons. He had his disability cheque and was probably indulging, Chantal says. Sadly, there was also an alert out about a batch of toxic drugs on the streets.

B次元官网网址淲e were frantic to find him.B次元官网网址�

He had to be on the road by 8:30 a.m. on June 23 to make the 1:30 deadline to get him to Red Fish. He was finally found on the morning of June 23 at 10:30 a.m. but he was a mess. They were also informed that it was too late for his placement, his spot had already been given away.

A decision was made to have Santos arrested so he would be safe and allow for a new start in the morning. He never made it to morning.

Chantal says she doesnB次元官网网址檛 want to blame anyone but there needs to be some kind change to the systems in place. It was a piling on of a lot of bad circumstances: Putting him in jail so he can be safe was a fateful decision. How intoxicated he was was not recognized. And Chantal has questions about how drug paraphernalia got into the jail. It was also a week where the drugs on the streets were B次元官网网址渃alled out as being very dangerous.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 so many layers. ItB次元官网网址檚 so many layers and nobody seems on the same page. I think thatB次元官网网址檚 the hard part for me,B次元官网网址� Chantal says.

The addiction crisis has been going on for seven years and there is still no plan or approach to deal with it. Chantal points out the contrast with the provinceB次元官网网址檚 mobilization to deal with COVID-19.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 have anything against what they did with COVID. I think it was great. They were able to, you know B次元官网网址� boom! B次元官网网址� do whatever they needed to do to take care of people,B次元官网网址� she says. B次元官网网址淎nd then these people seem to be left out of that sort of urge to help.

B次元官网网址淭hey built hospitals in a day when they needed to B次元官网网址� I donB次元官网网址檛 see why they canB次元官网网址檛 muster up a detox centre.B次元官网网址�

Detox centres alone are not the answer, Chantal says, but rather B次元官网网址渢hey are needed as an emergency initial first step towards saving lives in this emergency crisis.B次元官网网址� And following that, mental health needs to change and be more accessible to people who need help.

B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 my main push here, for me, is to make some changes, you know, for detox, clean drugs and police awareness because Santos isnB次元官网网址檛 the only one who just died in prison.B次元官网网址�

Changes to procedures have been made to other RCMP detachments elsewhere in the country, Chantal says, why are those changes not made universally?

B次元官网网址淚 want to change it here so people who are intoxicated are looked after medically first.B次元官网网址�

The IIO report into SantosB次元官网网址� death in police custody did not make any recommendations where the IIO has in other situations. This puzzles Chantal.

In the meantime, she promises to push for changes.

B次元官网网址淭his is not going to disappear until the powers that be recognize this situation as an emergency as we did COVID, for example. These lives are worthy. If the police, mental health, and the liaison ground workers canB次元官网网址檛 work together then more unnecessary tragic deaths will continue to happen. There are some incredibly dedicated people who are on the streets trying to make change, but there is also so much disconnect that through my experience itB次元官网网址檚 like riding a hamster wheel, lotB次元官网网址檚 of momentum going nowhere.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淭his is not going to disappear until the powers that be recognize this situation as an emergency as we did COVID, for example. These lives are worthy. If the police, mental health, and the liaison ground workers canB次元官网网址檛 work together then more unnecessary tragic deaths will continue to happen. There are some incredibly dedicated people who are on the streets trying to make change, but there is also so much disconnect that through my experience itB次元官网网址檚 like riding a hamster wheel, lotB次元官网网址檚 of momentum going nowhere.B次元官网网址�