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The Independent
3 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Opioid ‘hundred times stronger than heroin' linked to UK clubbing deaths for first time
Two people in their twenties have died in London after allegedly consuming a super-strong opioid drug, the first that experts have linked in the UK to the new substance. Warned that they can be hundreds of times stronger than heroin, nitazenes are a newer form of synthetic opioid and can be mis-sold as drugs including oxycodone, which is a highly addictive prescription drug used to treat pain. A 20-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man are understood to have taken the drug after visiting a club in south London over the May bank holiday weekend. The blue tablets, which are marked with the number 80, could potentially be mistaken for 'oxys', which can help users fall asleep. In a statement on their social media page, the nightclub Ministry of Sound in Elephant and Castle said: 'We have been informed of a dangerous batch of blue-green pills marked with '80' are being sold across London. 'These pills have been linked to hospitalisations and tragically two confirmed fatalities. 'Reports indicate they contain synthetic opioids, along with traces of ketamine and MDMA. They are being mis-sold as Ecstasy or Oxycodone, and investigations are ongoing.' They encouraged anyone who was feeling unwell while at the venue to seek medical help immediately from their on-site team. The Cause, in east London, and Fabric, in Farringdon, also posted similar messages warning people of the risks of consuming the drug. It has prompted fears ahead of festival season, with increased calls for front-of-house drug testing. Speaking to The Times, Professor Fiona Measham, the founder of drug checking charity The Loop, said: 'Up to now, there have been about two nitazene-related deaths per week in the UK, predominantly linked to contamination of opiate and street benzodiazepine markets,. 'This appears to be a leap from dependent to recreational drug using communities with the deaths of two clubbers but we don't yet know the purchase intent. If we did, we could target the appropriate groups looking to buy, for example, oxycodone or ecstasy pills.' The Home Office said: 'Every death from drugs is a tragedy and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the two individuals who have sadly lost their lives. 'We are determined to take steps to prevent drug-related deaths and we support the testing of drugs seized by the police or deposited in amnesty bins, but we cannot endorse testing for recreational users because there is no safe way to take illegal drugs. 'We are doing everything we can to tackle the evolving threat from synthetic opioids such as nitazenes, including working closely with the police to increase the number of officers carrying the opioid overdose antidote naloxone.' The Metropolitan Police said: 'We are currently investigating the death of two people at a residential address in Havelock Road, Southall. 'Met officers were called on Monday, 26 May at 16:00hrs following reports that a 20-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man had been found unresponsive. 'Paramedics from the London Ambulance Service attended the scene where both people were sadly pronounced dead. The deaths are being treated as unexpected and an investigation remains ongoing. 'Post-mortem examinations have been carried out and we await the results of toxicology findings. 'Next of kin for both the man and the woman have been informed, they are currently being supported by specialist officers.'
Evening Standard
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
Super-strength drug warning as opioid 'up to 500 times stronger than heroin' linked to London clubber deaths
The Cause, one of east London's most loved clubs, shared a photo of two pills marked with the number 80 on their Instagram, strongly advising partygoers not to engage with it and to warn their friends.
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Warning issued over two suspected Southall opioid deaths
Warnings have been issued by a west London council and nightclubs after two people died in suspected drug overdoses from highly potent synthetic opioids. An investigation is under way into the "sudden deaths" of a 28-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman in Southall on 26 May, the Metropolitan Police said."This is following reports that the individuals allegedly passed away after taking an illicit substance in the form of a green pill," a spokesperson for the force added. Drug testing charity The Loop has said the pills contain synthetic opioids called Nitazenes, which can be "50 to 500 times stronger than heroin". Ealing Council said the two people who died are understood to have taken green pills with the number 80 on one face and possibly an "OP" on the police said no arrests have been made in connection with the deaths. If you have been affected by issues raised in this story, help and support is available via BBC Action Line. East London nightclub The Cause posted about the pills on their Instagram account, stating there had been "several hospitalisations across multiple London venues".BBC News has contacted the London Ambulance Service (LAS) to verify this. The Loop said the pills are believed to have been sold as oxycodone. According to the NHS this is a prescription painkiller used to treat severe pain. What are nitazenes? Nitazenes are a type of high strength synthetic opioid - drugs which have a similar effect to heroin, but made in laboratories rather than from poppy developed by the pharmaceutical industry in the 1950s as a painkiller, clinical trials were abandoned amid concerns about their harmful compounds are dangerous because they can be 50 to 100 times stronger than heroin, so drug users have no idea of the potency of what they are drugs suppress the respiratory system, so people can die as they stop breathing but the symptoms of an overdose can be reversed by taking an antidote called naloxone. The most recent government data found there were 18 deaths linked to nitazenes in London from May 2023 to June 2024. The figure was 179 across Department for Health and Social Care stated the data "does not provide a comprehensive count of all deaths that may have involved potent synthetic opioids". An Ealing Council spokesperson urged people to avoid taking the green pills "even in small amounts".Anyone considering taking any other illicit pills should not do so alone, the council said, and should consider carrying naloxone - an opioid overdose anyone feels unwell after taking a substance, they are advised to seek emergency medical attention, the spokesperson Loop has also advised where such services are available to test drugs before they are taken.
Evening Standard
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
London clubs issue warning after Ealing deaths linked to ‘green pills'
The Cause, one of east London's most loved clubs, shared a photo of two pills marked with the number 80 on their Instagram, strongly advising partygoers not to engage with it and to warn their friends.
