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Teenager dies 'after taking laughing gas' at party in south-east London Teenager dies 'after taking laughing gas' at party in south-east London
(about 4 hours later)
A teenager has died after being found collapsed in a street in south-east London, with police saying he is believed to have taken nitrous oxide, known as laughing gas, at a party beforehand.A teenager has died after being found collapsed in a street in south-east London, with police saying he is believed to have taken nitrous oxide, known as laughing gas, at a party beforehand.
The alert was raised shortly after 11pm on Saturday when police and ambulance crews were called to Wolvercote Road, a residential street in Bexley, to find an 18-year-old man in cardiac arrest.The alert was raised shortly after 11pm on Saturday when police and ambulance crews were called to Wolvercote Road, a residential street in Bexley, to find an 18-year-old man in cardiac arrest.
The teenager was taken to hospital in a critical condition, police said. He was pronounced dead at 1.30am on Sunday.The teenager was taken to hospital in a critical condition, police said. He was pronounced dead at 1.30am on Sunday.
The Metropolitan police said the man is believed to have ingested nitrous oxide and alcohol at a party. His next of kin have been notified.The Metropolitan police said the man is believed to have ingested nitrous oxide and alcohol at a party. His next of kin have been notified.
A Met statement said: “A post-mortem will be scheduled in due course. At this stage the death is being treated as unexplained pending the findings of the post-mortem. Enquiries continue.”A Met statement said: “A post-mortem will be scheduled in due course. At this stage the death is being treated as unexplained pending the findings of the post-mortem. Enquiries continue.”
Research published earlier this year showed there had been a rise in the recreational use of nitrous oxide, known by various names including “hippie crack”. Flowers left at the scene identified the dead teenager as “Ally”. Two female friends leaving flowers at the entrance to a block of flats where the young man collapsed said he had a brother and sister and planned to study to be an electrician. They declined to name him.
It is not illegal to be in possession of the substance, although it is prohibited from being sold in England and Wales to under-18s if there is a risk they will inhale it. The gas can make people feel relaxed, euphoric and giggly, leading to the nickname laughing gas. It is usually inhaled through balloons. The teenagers said they had not seen the victim take nitrous oxide at the party, and that he had drunk just one beer. “He was the nicest person you could ever meet,” one said. “He was always happy and smiling.”
Abusing nitrous oxide can lead to oxygen deprivation resulting in loss of blood pressure, fainting and even heart attacks. Local people said they had seen paramedics trying to resuscitate the teenager as he lay unconscious. One 22-year-old woman who asked to not be named said: “A police woman was talking to two of his friends. I heard them say they had been at a party and were on their way home.
The research by respiratory consultant and neonatal paediatrician Dr Paul Seddon found that 7.6% of 16- to 24-year-olds in England and Wales have admitted to having tried balloons, which were described as “widely available” in shops that sell legal highs. “It is a real tragedy. You see the empty canisters everywhere on the estate. People take it but obviously don’t realise how dangerous they can be.”
Seventeen people in Britain died between 2006 and 2012 after taking the legal high. Nitrous oxide, sometimes also known as “hippy crack” and used medically as a mild anaesthetic, is now the second-most popular recreational drug in Britain after cannabis, with more than 400,000 16- to 24-year-olds reporting taking it in the past year.
Among signs of its current ubiquity are the large numbers of discarded metal canisters seen at music festivals and other events. In 2014, organisers of the Glastonbury festival said they had collected two tonnes of the canisters.
Users generally inhale the gas from a balloon, bringing a brief period of euphoria, which can be intensified or mixed with hallucinations if use is heavy. While deaths connected to the drug are relatively rare – there were 17 documented between 2006 and 2012 – over-abuse can bring oxygen deprivation, causing loss of blood pressure, fainting or even heart attacks.
It is not illegal to possess or inhaling nitrous oxide, and it is often sold openly, even though its sale is restricted under the Human Medicines Regulations Act of 2012. In May, the Home Office announced that sales of the drug would be restricted under a new clampdown on legal highs.