Asheville police data show overdose deaths concentrated in public housing

Pisgah View Apartments in West Asheville recorded three suspected overdose deaths so far in 2026 and 10 overdose incidents. Across Housing Authority of the City of Asheville properties, officers have counted four suspected overdose fatalities, including one in Livingston, while APD has opened 28 fatal overdose investigations citywide this year.

Police counted 33 overdose incidents in public housing communities, with Bartlett Arms at six, Erskine at five, Aston Park Towers at four, Hillcrest and Klondyke at three each, Deaverview at one, Livingston at one and Walton at none. The same neighborhoods logged 63 drug-related investigations and 81 drug-related arrests, with 39 of the investigations leading to at least one arrest. Police also counted 31 breaking-and-entering incidents in public housing communities.

APD is not the final authority on cause of death, and suspected overdose cases can later be certified as non-poisoning deaths. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services estimated 2,731 suspected overdose deaths statewide in 2025, about eight a day, and Buncombe County remains among North Carolina’s highest fentanyl-positive death rates. Buncombe County is set to receive more than $30 million in opioid settlement funds between 2022 and 2039, money for treatment, recovery, harm reduction and other life-saving services.

Rachael Tuck, 23, was reported missing June 4 and found dead June 9 in a vacant apartment there. Her death was suspected to be an overdose. The Housing Authority of the City of Asheville is focused on resident safety, staff support and stopping unauthorized entry into vacant apartments.

APD and the Housing Authority are preparing a one-year pilot program that will start in July and add police presence in public housing communities. The move follows an April agreement to increase patrols. Police focus on fentanyl, firearms and organized drug trafficking.