DEATH LINKED TO KILLER DRUG

A man believed to have died from an ecstasy overdose at a three-day
rave party in Sydney this year may have fallen victim to a chemical
error, a coroner's report has revealed.

The 26-year-old man had taken PMA (paramethoxyamphetamine) at a Full
Moon Dance Party in February, and not ecstasy as suspected, the report
found.

New South Wales deputy state coroner Jan Stevenson confirmed yesterday
that the man, of Ryde, had a large amount of the drug in his body when
he died.

National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre information manager Paul
Dillon said PMA was a chemical mixture inadvertently concocted as a
part of ecstasy manufacture, but was more deadly.

Mr Dillon said PMA scares went back to the 1970s when nine young
people in Canada died after taking the drug.

In Australia the first PMA scare was in October 1994 when it was
realised that it was being sold as a substitute for MDMA
(methylenedioxymethamphetamine).

Six Australian's had died from taking PMA between 1995 and 1997, he
said. Last year there were two deaths from the drug.

Drug expert David Crosbie, the former chief executive of the Alcohol
and Other Drugs Council of Australia, said the drug was usually passed
off as ecstasy.

Mr Crosbie said PMA had similar effects to speed, ecstasy and, to a
certain degree, cocaine.

"There's a fair chance that on any given day, if you're buying what
you think is ecstasy, you could be buying some other sort of
amphetamine that has similar effects but may be more toxic - and
that's the case with this drug," he said.

Adverse effects could include heat cramps in the arms, legs and back,
giddiness, extreme fatigue, headaches and an inability to urinate.

"They're all symptoms that something is going wrong with what they
thought was ecstasy," Mr Crosbie said.

"In this case, immediately take a break and try and cool
down.

"But the best treatment if people feel like they've taken something
and it's not working like ecstasy is to try and vomit as soon as possible."

The New South Wales Police Service said there was little evidence to
show that PMA - known as Death - was widely distributed in the state.

However, Crime Agencies Superintendent Ken McKay renewed a warning
about the dangers of consuming illegal amphetamines and ecstasy.

Superintendent McKay said amphetamine-based drugs were being produced
by backyard chemists. He said the drugs, often readily available at
dance parties, were usually a combination of a number of substances
and carried potentially deadly health risks.

"People buy these drugs thinking they are amphetamines or ecstasy but
they can be a mixture of several substances that have unknown
effects," he said.

"Police will not tolerate the distribution and manufacture of illegal
amphetamines and other substances, and will continue to target those
who are producing them."