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<\/p>\nThe “senseless” death of a Dunedin student who choked on his own vomit at a party has been described as “a woeful illustration of the prevalent youth drinking culture in New Zealand”. <\/p>\n
A coroner’s inquiry has determined the 20-year-old’s death was caused by asphyxia when vomit became stuck in his throat while intoxicated. <\/p>\n
The student, whose name is suppressed, was in his first year of study at Otago University when he died just after midnight on October 1, 2023 .<\/p>\n
Earlier in the evening the 20-year-old and some friends attended a party to celebrate his birthday. <\/p>\n
Witnesses said he began drinking an “unknown quantity” of alcohol after arriving at 6.40pm. <\/p>\n
He was later found passed out and “pretty much unresponsive” in the kitchen. <\/p>\n
He started vomiting and was carried to a bedroom in the flat. One of those with him looked for and found a pulse. <\/p>\n
“It is unclear from the evidence whether [the student] was left alone in bed, or whether anyone remained with him,” Associate Coroner EL van Son’s findings say. <\/p>\n
As a group of people later tried to clear his throat, the unconscious student became pulseless and “blue in the face”. <\/p>\n
At 11.25pm, emergency services were called. He was carried into the hallway, not breathing, and his face became purple. <\/p>\n
Despite the best efforts of partygoers and paramedics, CPR was unsuccessful, and the 20-year-old could not be revived. He was pronounced dead at 12.16am.<\/p>\n
A toxicology report found his blood contained an elevated level of 319 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The alcohol limit for a New Zealand driver aged 20 or over is 50 milligrams per 100 millilitres.<\/p>\n
Fatalities from alcohol consumption are typically in the range of 300 to 500 milligrams per 100 millilitres. <\/p>\n
‘Not an isolated incident’<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The coroner said the student’s death was a “woeful illustration of the prevalent youth drinking culture in New Zealand”. (Source: istock.com)<\/p>\n
The coroner described the student’s death as a “tragic consequence of excessive alcohol consumption by a young person”. <\/p>\n
“His death was senseless and is a woeful illustration of the prevalent youth drinking culture<\/a> in New Zealand. <\/p>\n “Sadly, [the student’s] death is not an isolated incident.” <\/p>\n