A WOMAN from Southampton was found dead in her kitchen after taking a mixture of drugs.

Catherine Black died after taking a number of street drugs when she was found at her flat by her neighbour in Poole Road on November 11.

Crack cocaine and heroin were found in the 60-year-old’s system.

Consultant histopathologist at Southampton General Hospital Dr Adrian Bateman said the cause of death was a mixed drug overdose. If you are using illicit drugs you don’t know how strong they are so every time you take a whack of cocaine you don’t know if it’s going to be stronger than you have taken before,” he said.

Recording a verdict of drug-related death, senior coroner for south Hampshire, Grahame Short, said: “It may be simply that she had a bad batch but we’ll never know as it was unwitnessed. I’m satisfied she did inject herself with street heroin and smoked crack during the previous night. I therefore, in light of Dr Bateman’s post-mortem, note that she died of a mixed drug overdose.”