A MAN from Rhyl suffered a drug- and alcohol-related death after collapsing at a pub in the town, an inquest concluded.

Peter Paul Cannon died aged 52 in the early hours of October 23, 2022 at The Glanglasfor Pub.

At a full inquest in Ruthin today (May 5), John Gittins, senior coroner for North Wales East and Central, gave a medical cause of death as acute heart failure as a result of combined drug effects, contributed to by a “fatty liver”.

Mr Gittins’ conclusion was one of a drug- and alcohol-related death.

A joiner by trade, with five sisters, Mr Cannon was described by his mother, Carol, as a “hard-working” man and a keen birdwatcher.

But after suffering a mental breakdown, he “didn’t pick a tool up” again, she added.

Mrs Cannon said that if her son was struggling considerably with his mental health, he would “drink quite heavily”, adding that he was also a heavy smoker.

She said: “Things started to go wrong, really, after he came back to Rhyl. He never got over his partner, and mum of his two boys, leaving him.

“He was much-loved by his sisters, and by everyone who knew him.

“He was a very quiet lad unless he’d had a drink; then, he’d come out of his shell a bit more.”

Mr Cannon had received monthly treatment from the Hafod Community Mental Health Team in Rhyl since November 2021, the inquest heard.

A community psychiatric nurse provided a statement saying that, at first, Mr Cannon appeared “a bit unkempt”.

She recalled an occasion where Mr Cannon attended an appointment with his son, who was concerned about his father, but the nurse said the team had “done everything” they could for him, including offering to clean his flat.

Her last contact with him was on October 5, 2022, when he was “pleasant and polite” and “engaged well” with his treatment.

Mr Cannon did not want to be referred to the Substance Misuse Service to help with his drinking, she said, even though this had also been offered to him.

But in the early hours of October 23, police and paramedics were called to The Glanglasfor, with a witness saying that Mr Cannon had become unresponsive at about 12.30am.

Despite efforts to revive him, including roughly 45 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Mr Cannon was pronounced dead at the pub.

Dr Muhammad Aslam, when conducting Mr Cannon’s post-mortem examination, found evidence of alcohol and cocaine use.

The level of alcohol in his system was found to be at twice the legal UK driving limit, while a metabolite of cocaine was discovered at levels 10 times the limit.

No injuries likely to have contributed to his death were found by Dr Aslam, but there were signs of liver and heart disease.

The combined effects of the alcohol and cocaine in his system were, Dr Aslam said, “synergistic”, resulting in acute heart failure.

Mr Cannon was also suffering from a “fatty liver”, he said, which would also have contributed indirectly towards his death by increasing the drugs’ effects.

Concluding, Mr Gittins told Mr Cannon’s mother: “I suspect he had his challenges in life, but you obviously tried your best in looking after him, and I’m sure you miss him.

“You have my very sincere condolences.”