More than 11,500 people have died in the last three years in an opioid crisis that will not abate in Canada, according to .

One life was lost every two hours in 2018 because of opioids, totaling 4,460 dead, up from 4,100 in 2017 and 3,017 in 2016.

鈥淐anada continues to experience a serious opioid crisis,鈥� said the Public Health Agency of Canada report. 鈥淎cross the country, it is having devastating effects on families and communities.鈥�

Most of the deaths -- 94 per cent or nearly 4,200 -- in 2018 were deemed accidental. Fentanyl was to blame for 73 per cent of those deaths, the report said. Three-quarters of the victims were men and the vast majority were young and middle-aged adults. But the crisis has affected 鈥淐anadians from all walks of life,鈥� the report added.

The data, which is updated four times a year, is broken down by province, emphasizing the widespread impact. No other region has been harder hit than Western Canada, where British Columbia has seen more than 1,000 opioid-related deaths each year since 2016.

The report stressed the fact that the vast majority of deaths were unintentional.

鈥淭his distinction is important to inform an appropriate public health response,鈥� the report said. 鈥淭he high percent of unintended deaths reinforces the concern that a variety of street drugs are tainted with toxic substances, such as fentanyl, without the knowledge of the people consuming them.鈥�