Deaths of at Least Four Tourists in Laos Due to Tainted Drinks

At a bar in Vang Vieng, Laos, on Tuesday. Officials warned of poisoning caused by alcoholic drinks containing methanol. Image: AP

(The Post News)– At least four individuals, one of whom is American, have died while traveling in Laos in the past few days due to suspected methanol poisoning from contaminated alcoholic beverages, according to authorities in Australia and New Zealand. Australia’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, announced on Thursday that Bianca Jones, an Australian national, had passed away in Thailand after falling ill in Laos.

Colonel Phattanawong Chanphon, superintendent of the police station in Muang Udon Thani, said Ms. Jones, 19, was hospitalized last week in Laos after drinking alcohol before her death in Thailand. According to him, the reason was swelling in the brain triggered by methanol.It remained uncertain if the three additional deaths of foreign tourists in Laos, a country in Southeast Asia that attracts many backpackers, were due to methanol.

In an email on Thursday, the State Department reported the death of an American in Vang Vieng, a popular tourist destination in Laos. It provided no specifics. Two Australian women in the same town reportedly fell ill after drinking shots of Lao vodka given to them by their hostel’s manager, as per The Associated Press.Methanol, a hazardous substance found in household and industrial items such as antifreeze, is occasionally included in beverages as a less expensive substitute for ethanol, the alcohol found in alcoholic drinks.

The Foreign Ministry of Australia released a statement this week suggesting that some Australians may have experienced methanol poisoning after drinking alcohol in Laos this month. It cautioned travelers to be cautious of dangers associated with alcoholic beverages containing spirits, such as cocktails. A statement released by New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday stated that their embassy in Bangkok, responsible for Laos, had been in touch with them.