Alert over 'contaminated' ecstasy

Health chiefs have issued an alert over ecstasy tablets after four people were admitted to hospital suffering "a serious reaction" to taking the drug.

Health chiefs have issued an alert over ecstasy tablets after four people were admitted to hospital suffering "a serious reaction" to taking the drug.

The cause of the reaction was still being investigated but one theory being pursued was possible contamination of the ecstasy, said Northern Ireland Drug and Alcohol Strategy Co­ordinator Jo Daykin.

She said: "The message must be made clear to young people today that every time they take an ecstasy tablet they are dicing with death."

The tablets concerned had been bought in north Belfast and those affected were admitted to one hospital in the city over the weekend, she disclosed.

Earlier this year three young people died in west Belfast after taking a lethal mix of drugs and alcohol.

The Department of Health in Northern Ireland was unaware of similar problems in Great Britain or other parts of the island, said Ms Daykin.

Health professionals, including those involved in treating drug users, had been alerted to the latest potential threat, she added.

She said: "Concerned drug misusers should, in the first instance, seek assistance from their GP. In the case of an emergency, the local accident and emergency department should be contacted."