# Direct, unbiased news. All in one spot.

Local Wire reports what your city actually did, from the public record, with every claim linked to the document it came from. Pick a city:

The wire · west to east along the lake2 cities

## The cities Local Wire reports

[Hamiltonlive2,037people counted homeless, August 202620.4opioid deaths per 100,000, against 13.9 for Ontario922hurt on Hamilton roads, and 13 killed6.5%unemployment, August 2026Latest · PoliceMissing Person: Nyarah Hinds LocatedRead the Hamilton wire →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/)[Burlingtonlive1,335building permits issued in 2025323homes approved to be built that year$377.6Min declared construction value behind themLatest · AgendaCommittee of Adjustment meets Wednesday, November 18Read the Burlington wire →](https://localwire.ca/burlington/)

## Hamilton at a glance

THE WIRE IS RUNNING · 16 sources read daily · figures re-derived 2026-09-21 · swept twice a day, 6:15 AM and 5 PM

On the roads

[267people killed on Hamilton roads2008 to 2025](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/017c8bdcc3a342308ab68bd2ba0e2758_0)[35%of the dead were on foot94 of 267 were pedestrians](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/017c8bdcc3a342308ab68bd2ba0e2758_0)[13killed in 202514 in 2008 · barely moved since](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/017c8bdcc3a342308ab68bd2ba0e2758_0)[−45%injuries since 20081,677 down to 922 · crashes got survivable, not less deadly](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/017c8bdcc3a342308ab68bd2ba0e2758_0)

The drug crisis

[118suspect drug deaths in 2026through July · coroner-reported, preliminary](https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/public-health/alcohol-drugs-gambling/hamilton-opioid-information-system)[163in all of 2025roughly one death every two days](https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/public-health/alcohol-drugs-gambling/hamilton-opioid-information-system)[20.4opioid deaths per 100,000 (2024)Ontario: 13.9 · Hamilton runs far above the province](https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/public-health/alcohol-drugs-gambling/hamilton-opioid-information-system)[190opioid paramedic calls in Augustthe 2017 monthly average was 36](https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/public-health/alcohol-drugs-gambling/hamilton-opioid-information-system)

Homelessness

[2,037people known to be homelessAugust 2026 · the city's point-in-time count](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/scale-of-homelessness)[+136%since January 2020864 then · 2,037 now](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/scale-of-homelessness)[2,247the worst month on recordMarch 2026 · 5 months below it since](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/scale-of-homelessness)[1,127homeless under six months910 have been homeless longer than that](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/scale-of-homelessness)

Shelter occupancy that month ran highest for men, at 95% of capacity. [Shelter occupancy, by sector →](https://open.hamilton.ca/datasets/shelter-occupancy)

The cost of living

[$6,0282026 taxes on the average home in Hamiltonassessed at $387,100 · urban with full time fire](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#taxes)[$4,828the same home in Flamboroughrural with volunteer fire · a $1,200 gap on the same house](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#taxes)[$1,528average two-bedroom rent (2025)CMHC survey of occupied units · asking rents run higher](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#rent)[+60%rent since 2016$901 then · $1,439 now, all unit sizes](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#rent)

Jobs and the housing market

[6.5%unemployment in August 2026Hamilton area · Statistics Canada, updated monthly](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#jobs)[6.9%a year earlierAugust 2025 · three-month average, seasonally adjusted](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#jobs)[3.6%apartment vacancy in 2025CMHC October survey · empty units are what hold rents down](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#rent)[1.8%at the 2022 squeezevacancy has loosened since · the rent plateau's backdrop](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers#rent)

Across the city

[3,268violent crimes in 2026all 15 wards, through May · police ward reports](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers/)[6,652property crimes in 2026through May · raw counts, not rates](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers/)[997opioid ER visits in 2026through August · hospital admissions on top](https://www.hamilton.ca/people-programs/public-health/alcohol-drugs-gambling/hamilton-opioid-information-system)[116development applications in 2026rezonings, site plans, subdivisions · running count](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers/)

[Every figure links the city dataset it comes from. See all the numbers, year by year and ward by ward →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/numbers/)

[Read the Hamilton wireEvery council vote, police release and public meeting, with the source document beside the story.→](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/)Latest from Hamiltonswipe for more →

- [police releaseMissing Person: Nyarah Hinds LocatedHamilton Police Service issued this appeal on Sunday, September 20, 2026 and are asking the public for help. The service's release is republished in full below.Read it with its source document →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/2026-09-20-missing-person-nyarah-hinds-located/)
- [police releaseMissing Person: Nyarah HindsThis appeal is no longer being carried as current. Check the police service's own page for the situation now.Read it with its source document →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/2026-09-19-missing-person-nyarah-hinds/)
- [data briefSuspect drug deaths in Hamilton reach 118 for 2026 through JulyThe coroner's figures on the city's own dashboard record 22 suspect drug-related deaths in July, bringing 2026 to 118 so far against 163 in all of 2025.Read it with its source document →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/2026-07-hamilton-suspect-drug-deaths-july/)
- [police releaseMale Arrested After Overnight Stabbing on Main Street WestHamilton Police Service issued this release. Local Wire could not retell it without identifying someone, so it is linked here in full rather than summarized.Read it with its source document →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/2026-09-18-male-arrested-after-overnight-stabbing-on-main-street-west/)
- [police releasePair Sought in Downtown AssaultHamilton Police Service issued this release. Local Wire could not retell it without identifying someone, so it is linked here in full rather than summarized.Read it with its source document →](https://localwire.ca/hamilton/2026-09-17-pair-sought-in-downtown-assault/)

[The record, not a reporter

Council agendas, minutes, roll-call votes and police releases, read directly. Nothing comes from an anonymous tip.](https://localwire.ca/about/sources/)[Rules that block, not suggest

Eight safety rules written in code, not a style guide. A release naming a minor cannot publish, the same way every time.](https://localwire.ca/about/principles/)[The receipt is on the page

Every article carries its source document beside the story, not buried in a footnote. Click the fact, read the record.](https://localwire.ca/corrections/)

---

Source: https://localwire.ca/