A CORONER has warned about the dangers of cocaine after the tragic death of a successful young property developer.

Marc Andrew Lindsay, 21, collapsed and died after snorting a large amount of cocaine at a friend's house in Skelmanthorpe. His friends, 21-year-olds Richard Kellett and Ross McDaid, tried in vain to save him.

The Huddersfield hearing was told by Richard Sykes, principal analyst at West Yorkshire Analytical Services, that cocaine can send the user's blood pressure soaring, damaging both the heart and arteries in the brain.

He said the level of cocaine found in Mr Lindsay's body was one of the highest he had seen and well in the range of levels which had led to other deaths. Consultant pathologist Alexander Vodovnik said Mr Lindsay's heart and brain showed signs of previous cocaine use.

Recording a verdict that Mr Lindsay had died from an abuse of drugs, coroner Roger Whittaker accepted that Mr Lindsay was not addicted to cocaine,

but said his death should be a warning to others about the dangers of taking so-called recreational drugs.

"It's a dreadful scourge," he said. "People think it can't happen to them, but it can and it does.

"Sadly it happened to Marc who died at the age of 21 with all his life before him. When anyone dies it's a tragedy. When a young man held in such a high regard by his family and work colleague dies, it's too difficult to bear."

The hearing was told that Marc - who lived in Farnley Tyas - had been friends with Mr Kellett and Mr McDaid since they were at Shelley High School together.

They arranged to spend an evening drinking lager and taking cocaine at Mr Kellett's home in Woodlands Drive, Skelmanthorpe, while his parents were away on holiday.

Mr Kellett said he and Mr Lindsay had taken recreational drugs for two years and on a couple of occasions had snorted cocaine while on nights out in Huddersfield town centre pubs.

But on the fatal night he arrived back home after playing pool to find Mr Lindsay and Mr McDaid already there.

In a police statement read out to court, he said: "I saw a pile of white powder on the dining-room table. I had never seen so much cocaine before.

"The pile was 54cms in diameter and 1cm deep at its peak. Marc had texted me to say he would bring some cocaine."

He reckoned there was about 5 grammes of cocaine on the table.

Mr McDaid, of Riverside, Clayton West, said Mr Lindsay had taken the drugs to the house and had already had two lines of cocaine before Mr Kellett arrived home and they all then had some.

At about midnight Mr Lindsay said he wanted to watch a TV programme about entrepreneurs, so the other two went to sit out on the patio.

Minutes later they heard a bang and went back in to find Mr Lindsay collapsed on the floor.

He was drifting in and out of consciousness and they panicked when they realised his breathing had stopped and tried to give him mouth to mouth resuscitation and cardiac massage.

They phoned for an ambulance which arrived in 11 minutes and during that time ambulance staff told the two friends how to give mouth to mouth and heart massage. When paramedics arrived they realised Mr Lindsay's heart had stopped and battled in vain to save his life. He was officially pronounced dead soon after arriving at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.