Police warning over "hippie crack" abuse

PCSO Paul Newman, of Main Street Police Station, Rotherham, spoke out after discovering used nitrous oxide canisters in Kimberworth Park.

The canisters, which are used in whipped cream aerosol cans to stop the cream going bad, can be inhaled to make people feel euphoric and relaxed.

The gas is also known as laughing gas or hippie crack and the canisters are also known as chargers or whippits.

But inhaling the gas can cause hallucinations and could even be fatal as it could lead to a lack of oxygen.

It is especially dangerous if used in an enclosed space or a lot is used in a short space of time.

PCSO Newman said he had found 15 canisters on one patch of grass in Kimberworth Park last Sunday (24).

“It looked like they had been dumped there overnight,” he said.

“I thought something about it wasn’t quite right and I found they had probably been used to get a quick high.

“Because I found such a quantity of them in such a small area I thought we needed to publicise something about this.”

PCSO Newman said he was planning to visit schools to educate children before the six-week summer holiday.

“It’s not against the law to buy them so we need to educate our young people not to use them,” he said.

“During the summer holidays you get a lot of young people looking for something to do and someone might say, ‘Do this, it’s harmless’.

“On the contrary, it can harm you, because if you get nitrous oxide in your system, it can go to your heart or your brain and you can end up dead.”