LSD tablets (TalkToFrank.com)

Twelve people aged between 17 and 24-years-old were hospitalised this weekend after it is suspected they took a bad batch of the class A drug LSD.

At 9:11pm on Saturday Northumbria Police were called to a house on Osborne Terrace to attend to concerns about nine men and three women who were said to have taken LSD tabs with a strawberry motif printed on them. Three police cars were accompanied by two ambulances to deal with the incident, Jesmond resident Katy Bamber tweeted.

got home to 2 ambulances & 3 police cars outside? #scary

— Katy Bamber (@katy_bamber) November 16, 2013

All 12 were hospitalised after paramedics visited the home; four remain in hospital, with one still undergoing treatment, while eight were discharged from the Royal Victoria Infirmary and Rake Lane hospital near North Shields.

Police officers have arrested a 22-year-old man under suspicion of being involved in the supply of drugs and are carrying out enquiries as to the circumstances surround the 12 people’s hospitalisation, and warn residents about the dangers of taking illegal drugs.

LSD, a class A hallucinogenic, has decreased in popularity amongst adults, according to government data. In 2011/12, 5.3% of 16-59 year olds said they had ever taken the drug, down from 6.2% in 2000.

Other class A drugs have proved more popular, however, overtaking LSD in the proportion of people using them. Both cocaine and ecstasy have been abused more by the national population in the past 17 years, with nearly double the number of adults reporting that they have taken cocaine at some point in their lives. Ecstasy usage has doubled since 1996.

More to follow

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