Police investigate 12-year-old's death

The death of a 12-year-old Christchurch boy who had been huffing butane comes after years of similar incidents, and resulting warnings.

National Poisons Centre medical toxicologist Dr Michael Beasley wrote in a New Zealand Medical Journal article that inhalant abuse was a persisting problem.

He said children as young as 10 were experimenting with such chemicals.

Dr Beasley said continued education and other preventive measures were essential to help curb an extremely dangerous practice.

That article was published in 2006.

Last year the Otago Southland urged the Health Ministry to increase publicity on the dangers of huffing after the death of a 17-year-old dairy worker who had inhaled butane.

The same coroner issued similar pleas in his findings into the death of a 21-year-old Dunedin woman who died from a heart attack after inhaling fly spray.

He said it was another tragic outcome of a young person experimenting with the inhalation of toxic substances.

Police are investigating how a group of young people obtained the butane.

It's believed he'd been with a group who were sniffing butane from a canister.

Detective Inspector David Long says the death has been referred to the Coroner, but there is still police work to be done.

"Enquiries are ongoing and we're looking to establish where the young person obtained the chemicals from."

Retailers stocking products which can be used as inhalants are being urged to be cautious, especially when they're selling to young people.

Detective Inspector Long says if retailers have doubts about a customer's intentions it's best not to sell the product.

"Young people clearly don't appreciate the risk and danger that they're putting to their health, or to their life, by sniffing such items."

Police in Christchurch say they have identified the store where local youths are believed to have bought a canister of butane and huffed it in a New Brighton car park.

Police haven't decided yet whether any charges can be laid relating to the sale of the product.

The death has been referred to the coroner.

Police say the cause of death has yet to be confirmed and a post mortem examination will be held tomorrow.

A toxicologist says those who die in this way are usually first-time huffers, the heart's ability to receive stimulus from adrenalin interfered with.

Inhalant abuse in New Zealand is happening in pockets of communities all around the country.

Drug Foundation chief Ross Bell says it's unusual for someone so young to inhale solvent.

"Inhalant abuse or solvent abuse isn't a common practice in New Zealand, what we happen to see is pockets of this practice happening in different parts at different points in time."

Mr Bell says it's hard to stop people getting access to the gas, simply because it's in so many household products.

"We have seen some larger chain stores like Resene, Mitre 10 and The Warehouse find ways to better manage the sale of these products so they get locked away in a cabinet and customers have to be quite active and ask for them."

He says butane sniffing does happen from time to time in pockets of communities.

There'll be a post mortem on the boy's body on Monday.

A Facebook page has been set up to pay tribute to Christchurch boy Darius Claxton.

The 12-year-old died on Friday night after sniffing butane with his mates in a New Brighton carpark.

Nearly 60 friends have joined an 'RIP Darius Claxton' page, with dozens of posts from people who are shocked and upset at his death.

One friend wrote she hopes Darius' friends learn from this tragic accident, while others pass their love and sympathy to his family members.

A toxicologist says those who die in this way are usually first-time huffers, the heart's ability to receive stimulus from adrenalin interfered with.

Photo: NZ Herald