Health officials in Northern Ireland are linking the deaths of 19 people to a new unregulated drug similar to ecstasy.

The men and woman - aged between 27 and 41 - all died between last June and February.

A coroner has described the effects of the drug as 'catastrophic'.

The drug has a number of street names - including speckled cherries and speckled crosses.

The substance could be sold as powder or tablets and reportedly was first found in The Netherlands in two years ago.

It has since been sold in Denmark, Hungary, Finland, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

The 4,4'-Dimethylaminorex drug is a sympathomimetic drug said to be related to 4-methylaminorex and pemoline.

Coroner Suzanne Anderson told a court in Belfast "It does seem that there has been a cluster of deaths involving this particular drug".