Friday (October 27) was a horrific day for some families and emergency responders in Abbotsford.

Between 10:15 a.m. and 7:20 p.m., there were five fatal overdoses, according to Abbotsford police.

Three of the deceased are men and two are women, and all died alone.

"While it could take some time for the toxicology exams to definitively determine that the causes of death were fentanyl or carfentanil, first responders in Abbotsford have seen enough evidence to know what we are dealing with," a police news release says. "Every day another fatal overdose is added to the record number that is being established for the province. Yesterday, we lost five citizens, and family and friends lost five loved ones."

It came after a week of "dozens of overdoses which regrettably, have become the norm with the proliferation of fentanyl and carfentanil in street drugs".

Earlier this month, the B.C. Coroners Service reported that a record-breaking 1,013 people had died in B.C. in the first eight months of this year from illicit drug overdoses.

The previous annual record was set last year at 982, which was up from 519 in 2015 and 369 in 2014.