A TEENAGER who was left fighting for his life after apparently sniffing lighter fluid has died nearly six months later.

Ribblesdale High School pupil Clarke Clayton, 14, was found unconscious in the garden of a house in Weaver's Croft, Billington, last September.

It is believed he had suffered a heart attack and Langho police officer Dave Fish and resident Sue Whitehead battled to keep Clarke alive with resuscitation techniques until paramedics arrived.

PC Fish then drove the ambulance to Blackburn Royal Infirmary while the paramedics carried on trying save Clarke's life.

Clarke, of River Lea Gardens, Clitheroe, was later transferred to Booth Hall Children's Hospital in Manchester, where he died on Tuesday.

An inquest into his death has been opened and adjourned until May 2.

At the time of the tragedy Glynne Ward, the school's headteacher, said pupils were devastated and issued a stark warning to youngsters tempted to inhale solvents. She said: "Our hearts go out to his family. It is an absolute tragedy."

In June last year it was revealed that more people die in the North West from solvent abuse than any other part of Britain.

In 1998 14 people in the region died after sniffing gas, aerosols or glue, prompting the Government to change the law.

The new law banning the sale of solvents to under-18s came into force in October last year - a month after Clarke's tragedy.

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