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Nitazenes can be injected, inhaled or swallowed

By Mandy McAuley

BBC NI Spotlight

Super strength street drugs which are "500 times stronger than morphine" have been linked to multiple deaths across Northern Ireland for the first time, a coroner has said.

The Public Health Agency (PHA) warned in July that new synthetic opioids Nitazenes may be in Belfast.

They have now been implicated in the deaths of six people, with an average age of 28, BBC News NI can reveal.

The death toll may rise as more tests are carried out.

Coroner Joe McCrisken's findings also reveal that the drug which he says is "a serious danger to public health" has been circulating in Northern Ireland since April 2022 when the first known death occurred.

Local drug addiction services say the coroner's findings reinforce the need for more rapid intervention and testing to tackle a synthetic drugs problem that they fear could spiral out of control.

What are Nitazenes?

Nitazenes were first developed in the 1950s as a pain-killing medication but are so potent and addictive they have never been approved for medical or therapeutic use.