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VICTORIA — Rachel Staples let out the dog, started brewing coffee and then immediately felt panic as she walked up to her son’s room on April 20 last year, she told a coroner’s inquest Monday.

“He clearly was gone, but I didn’t know for how long,” Staples told the inquest into the death of 16-year-old Elliot Eurchuk. “I pumped the naloxone into his thigh, but I know he was gone. He’d been long gone. Of course I screamed, ‘Help.’ ”

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The British Columbia Coroners Service called an inquest in March, saying the public has an interest in hearing the circumstances of the death of the Victoria-area teen, and that a jury would have the opportunity to make recommendations to prevent similar deaths.

Staples is the first witness to testify at the inquest, which is scheduled for eight days and expected to hear from more than 40 witnesses.

She told the five-person jury about her family’s efforts to help their son recover from serious sports injuries that resulted in him becoming addicted to pain medications and eventually street drugs.