A SELF-confessed alcoholic who was drinking a bottle of vodka a day died from alcohol poisoning combined with the effects of a prescribed sleeping tablet, an inquest heard.

Michael Holmes, of Leamington Avenue, Burnley, told an inquest in Burnley how he went to see his son Mark Anthony Holmes, 34, at his flat in Melville Street, Burnley, on Boxing Day.

He said he thought his son was sleeping but saw three and a half bottles of vodka and three cans near him and realised he had died.

Mr Holmes told how his son had tried to fight his addiction to alcohol by attending treatment centres. He said his wife had also helped by keeping him at their house and helping Mark to detoxify.

Mark had worked as a petrol station cashier and had lived at the flat for about five weeks.

Mr Holmes said: "I was concerned about the strength of what he was drinking and we had lots of discussions about it. In the last four weeks sometimes he had been drinking a bottle of vodka a day and strong cans of lager.

"I saw him on Christmas Eve and he was to spend Christmas Day with us but he never turned up."

Mr Holmes said his son had never indicated any intention to end his own life but in the last five or six weeks his addiction had come back and he could not cope.

Pathologist Dr W D Salman said the blood analysis showed Mr Holmes had drunk the alcohol equivalent of 14 to 15 pints and there was evidence of a prescribed sleeping tablet. He gave the cause of death as alcohol poisoning combined with benzodiazopine.

Recording a verdict of "misadventure" East Lancashire coroner David Smith said: "What is sad is that he wanted to help himself and he had been. Alcohol is a drug and people don't really seem to understand it can be just as bad as other drugs, if not worse."

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