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The B.C. Coroners Service is taking issue with a fentanyl prevention program created by a funeral services chain.

Alternatives Funeral and Cremation Services created the program, which uses “powerful, perhaps even controversial” visual aids, after one of the funeral homes in its chain reported serving four to five families every month who had lost a loved one to an overdose.

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The program includes a poster of grieving family members surrounding a coffin under a banner reading “Will fentanyl be the reason for your next family get-together?”

A coffin and hearse are also part of the 45-minute presentation aimed at parents and their children aged 12 and up.

The death toll has surged since fentanyl arrived in B.C. Coroner’s service statistics between January and September of this year show there were 186 deaths involving victims aged 10 to 29.

On Saturday, the B.C. Coroner’s Service said it did not endorse the program, saying scare tactics and “fear-based initiatives” are less effective in saving lives.