Grays Harbor County April 2026 Coroner’s Report released

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, May 20, 2026

The Grays Harbor County April 2026 Coroner’s Report was included in the May 19 Grays Harbor Board of County Commissioners meeting agenda packet.

During the month of April 2026 there were 58 deaths reported to the Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office. This total is less than 2025 (66), less than 2024 (63), less than 2023 (59), less than 2022 (64), and less than 2021 (63).

Fifty-three deaths were reported as natural causes. These deaths included cardiac issues, cancer, infections, gastrointestinal diseases and pulmonary issues.

As of April 30, 265 deaths have been reported to the coroner’s office.

There were five non-natural deaths reported for the month. One by firearm, one by drugs, and three pending additional investigation.

Grays Harbor is currently ranked fourth in the state per capita for overdose deaths from March 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026. Overdose deaths for that period are 45.3 per 100,000. Overdose deaths in the state appeared to have declined somewhat. Methamphetamine and fentanyl are still the prevalent substances, but other drugs such as benzodiazepine, buprenorphine, cocaine and methadone have also been seen in some cases over the last few months.

Investigators conducted 25 on-scene investigations for the month, with a total of 87 for the year. Time on scene varied from as little as two hours, to sometimes as long as eight hours. In addition, many hours are spent on follow-up to many of these cases, for both natural and non-natural cases. This may include attending autopsies, following up with families, medical personnel and law enforcement.

The report added that five post-mortem examinations were conducted during the month.