KILLER clubland drug Ecstasy is being blamed for the loss of another young life in the region.

Stacey Laight, 15, died after apparently taking the so-called recreational drug during a night-out with friends on Teesside.

Stacey, from Horden, near Peterlee, County Durham, is thought to have taken a cocktail of drink and drugs while out in pubs and clubs in Hartlepool on Friday night.

She returned to her cousin's home in Peterlee by taxi in the early hours of Saturday morning, but became unwell. She continued to deteriorate throughout the day.

The teenager was taken to the University Hospital of Hartlepool shortly after midnight on Sunday, but was pronounced dead on arrival.

A post-mortem examination was carried out and samples were sent to Home Office laboratories for toxicology tests to help determine what killed her.

Acting Detective Sergeant Mark Willoughby, of Peterlee Police, said: "We believe Stacey had taken Ecstasy, alcohol and other drugs.

"We hope the laboratory tests will confirm the exact cause of death."

Stacey's immediate family was too upset to comment yesterday.

She had been out with her 25-year-old cousin, Clare Winstanley.

Clare, who has two sons aged six and three, said: "The drugs problem is no worse here than anywhere else but, when something like this happens, it brings it home to you just how vulnerable your kids are. This has devastated the family."

Neighbours in Hall Crescent, Horden, last night paid tribute to the teenager, who used to babysit for nearby families.

"I knew her quite well and she was a nice girl, very friendly," said one. "She didn't look like the sort of girl who would take drugs."

Another added: "She was a lovely lass, always kind and helpful. She lived with her mum and younger brother and was always going out with her friends."

Bill Milligan, head teacher of St Bede's RC School where Stacey was a pupil, said: "This is a tragedy and the family are the first people in our thoughts."

He said the school was planning to hold a memorial service.

Stacey's death comes only a fortnight after 15-year-old Bishop Auckland pupil Catherine Longstaff died in hospital.

Results from toxicology tests are still awaited after her death, which is thought to have been heroin-related.

Up to a million young people in Britain take Ecstasy every weekend. David Cliff, co-ordinator of Durham and Darlington Drug Action Teams, said: "Ecstasy is very much part of the pub and club culture and in some parts of the North-East it is available for as little as £2 or £3.

"We are now getting up to the levels in the South and clearly it is an area of great concern.

"We try to make as much information available as possible about the drug, but ultimately we cannot make people stop taking it. They are taking their lives into their hands but the most we can do is let them have an informed choice."

Janet Betts, the mother of teenager Leah Betts, who died after taking Ecstasy at a club in Essex six years ago, now runs a drugs awareness campaign. She said: "This must be absolutely devastating for her family.

"It is such a wasteful death and that is what hits you the most.

"Ecstasy is such an unpredictable drug you have no way of knowing what effect it will have, and it is very sad that people are still taking it when they are much more aware of the dangers now."

Last night, Melanie Fisher, 20, a regular on the clubbing scene at Hartlepool said: "I have seen people doing drugs around the town. It is part of the way life is. But something like this is quite scary."

l A woman in her 30s from Peterlee and a man in his 20s from Blackhall, County Durham, were arrested on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs. Both were released on police bail last night pending further inquiries.