Laughing gas ‘epidemic' sweeping party island with tourists left foaming at mouth, having seizures & permanently scarred
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BRIT tourists have been suffering seizures, foaming at the mouth and left permanently scarred after inhaling toxic drugs on the streets of Ibiza.
Armed with industrial-sized canisters of nitrous oxide, determined dealers roam the infamous San Antonio party strip - targeting Brits as "easy prey".
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Tourists laden with balloons on the notorious San Antonio party strip
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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Local businesses are fed up with the rampant use of balloons on the streets of Ibiza
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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A holidaymaker inhaling nitrous oxide - surrounded by empty balloons
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
But the Class C drug can cause a range of health issues - and in some cases can even be fatal.
In the UK, the gas is most commonly sold in small canisters which deliver a single dose - enough to fill one balloon.
But dealers in San Antonio are armed with huge canisters that pump out up to 80 hits - and come in boxes of six.
At the going rate of five euros a balloon, the street value of a six-pack of canisters is around £2,000 - and they're strewn across the town.
When The Sun visited the notorious strip, our reporter was hounded and followed down the street by dealers.
Katie Mae, a bartender at Irish pub Shenanigans on the town's main strip, said laughing gas is 'the worst of them all'.
The 21-year-old told The Sun: "I'll lecture anyone I see taking it - I've seen the worst things from laughing gas.
'I've seen young lads having seizures on the street and foaming at the mouths, but their friends are high so do nothing to help.
'One girl I saw inhaled gas straight from the canister, and it froze one side of her face.
"It was all cut up and she would have been scarred for life."
After working on the strip for three seasons, Katie said: 'The consequences aren't talked about anywhere near enough.
"People don't take it seriously as a drug - but it's one of the worst."
One British bar worker living in San Antonio told us she used to sell laughing gas here, but stopped after one of her customers 'nearly died'.
The Brit said she got 'freaked out' when a young lad fell backwards and smashed his head on the road in the midst of a balloon high.
She told us: 'I used to sell laughing gas for about a year-and-a-half because it was easy money.
'You'd sell each balloon for five euros and buy the canisters for cheap. There's loads of shops around here that sell them.
'But as soon as that happened I stopped. It really freaked me out.
'And the gas is not good stuff - it freezes your insides.'
Nitrous oxide - the facts
NITROUS oxide - also known as laughing gas or hippy crack - was recently made a Class C due to the dangers associated with the drug.
It can cause a range of health issues and in some cases can even be fatal.
Some common side effects from inhaling the gas are dizziness, nausea, disorientation, loss of balance and weakness in legs, according to a study on its risks published to the National Library of Medicine.
Nitrous oxide can impair memory and thinking, the research mentioned. Some users might also feel anxious or paranoid.
According to the Alcohol and Drug Foundation (ADF), the gas from nitrous oxide bulbs is intensely cold, sometimes as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius.
Inhaling directly from the canister or crackers - handheld devices used to 'crack' open canister - can cause frostbite on the nose, lips and throat, even the vocal cords.
The icy chill of the gas canisters can also cause cold burns to the hands.
Long term, heavy use of laughing gas can cause a lack of vitamin B12. Severe deficiency can lead to serious nerve damage, causing tingling and numbness in the fingers and toes.
Lack of B12 can also cause damage to the spinal cord.
In some cases, frequent and prolonged use of nitrous oxide has been linked to thromboembolic events - this means a blood clot has gotten stuck and caused an obstruction.
The so-called laughing gas has also resulted in deaths.
Another Brit staff member at the bar described the situation as an "epidemic".
The streets around San Antonio's so-called West End, which includes the main strip and most of the bars, are littered with brightly-coloured rubber confetti.
Angelica Giraldo, a shopworker at Xanadu Supermarket near the strip, said the mess left behind by party-goers has ruined certain areas.
She said: 'Lots of the tourists who come to San Antonio seem just to want to take drugs and to party rather than enjoy the island.
'I don't really see the other stuff - but the rubbish from the balloons is very clear. You see them all over the road, it's very ugly.'
Angelica, 40, has lived in Ibiza all her life and noticed a sharp rise in laughing gas in recent years.
She said: 'It is everywhere now. And it causes lots of accidents.
'People take it while driving, but it makes them go crazy and they crash. This happens a lot.'
Selling the gas for recreational use is illegal in Spain - but that doesn't stop a crew of drug dealers openly pushing it every night.
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The streets in San Antonio are full of tourists inhaling nitrous oxide
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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Dealers in San Antonio are armed with huge canisters that pump out up to 80 hits
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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Nitrous oxide balloons litter the floor on the notorious party strip in San Antonio
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
Walking around the West End, tourists are hounded constantly by - and see youngsters as an easy sell.
The dealers loiter amongst the outdoor bar seating and persistently hassle drinkers to encourage them to buy balloons - and many do.
Bartender Katie claimed the dealers have an app to alert each other if police are patrolling a certain area.
On one occasion, The Sun saw Civil Guards officers walking down the strip with a confiscated canister, and another cop was seen searching a young man for drugs.
The Sun approached cops on the street - but they all refused to talk about the issue.
While laughing gas is the most obvious drug in San Antonio due to the brightly-coloured balloons, almost any party drug you can think of is readily available.
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Tourists inhale laughing gas on benches in San Antonio
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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Finished balloons litter the street on the notorious party strip
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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Angelica Giraldo, a shopworker at Xanadu Supermarket near the strip, said the mess left behind by party-goers has ruined certain areas
Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
Walking along the sea-front, dealers call out "hey, dude, yo, what do you need?' to almost every passerby.
Anything other than a stern refusal sees them opening up a pouch stuffed full of drugs, and flashing you bags of coloured powders or pills.
Ricardo, who runs Jungle Bistró Ibiza in the old town district with his wife, said he is glad that most of the anti-social behaviour is limited to San Antonio's West End.
And he said it is 'easy' for the dealers to sell to young Brits.
The restaurant manager said: 'A lot of them are British, they come to San Antonio just for the parties.
'It is easy to sell to them. I don't want any of that over in this part of town. We mainly have families around here'
San Antonio Town Council said: "The process is also underway to incorporate ten new officers into the Local Police force, increasing its staff from 59 to 69.
"This will ensure a more effective service tailored to the municipality's current needs.
"A new position of intrusion and community coexistence officer has also been created, and a private security service will be put out to tender with the aim of reducing vandalism and uncivil behaviour in selected areas.
"The City Council is fully aware that these are only the first steps in a broader transformation process and that there is still a long way to go.
"Therefore, it remains steadfast in its commitment to continue working to build a better Sant Antoni for everyone, supporting a tourism model that prioritizes quality, sustainability, and coexistence."
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