A WOMAN collapsed and died after snorting cocaine while celebrating her 50th birthday with friends in a Gloucestershire market town, an inquest heard.

Gloucestershire Coroner’s Court was told that Michaela Hunter, of Sandy Lane, Hartley Wintney, was with three friends in Westfield, Wotton-Under-Edge, Glos, on July 5 when she was taken ill.

She had taken two lines of cocaine during the evening and had also drunk a small amount of vodka, the inquest was told. She went to bed but when she became unresponsive later in the evening the emergency services were called by her friends.

The court was told that a paramedic carried out CPR on Ms Hunter but he was unable to revive her and recorded Ms Hunter's death at 12.29am on July 6.

A post mortem report said Ms Hunter died from a sudden cardiac death that had been brought on by sustained cocaine use.

He stated that she had a substantial dosage of the drug in her body, amounting to acute cocaine toxicity, which had also contributed to her suffering from ischemic heart disease.

Ms Hunter’s family asked the assistant coroner Roland Wooderson if the ambulance had been called earlier, would she have survived?

Mr Wooderson replied: “I am unable to answer that particular question, but it would not change the outcome over my decision into her death.”

The coroner recorded that Ms Hunter suffered from a drug-related death.