Brits have been warned about the hazards of methanol poisoning in South East Asia traveller hotspot Laos following six deaths related to contaminated vodka shots — including that of a young British lawyer.
But the risks posed by the toxin, which is mixed into counterfeit booze to boost profits, isn’t just a problem for those visiting South East Asia.
Cases have been reported in holiday hotspots that tens-of-thousands of Brits flock to every year such as Greece and Turkey, with some experts warning it is a rising problem.
According to guidance published on the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) website, British tourists and expats must be aware of the risk of methanol poisoning via fake alcohol in Indonesia, Costa Rica, Vietnam, and now, Laos.
Australian officials also warn that travellers to Thailand, Cambodia and British holiday favourite Turkey should also be wary of the risks of methanol poisoning.
Brits themselves have also been documented falling afoul of methanol poisoning in Greece.
Methanol poisoning can be incredibly deadly, with fatality rates as high as 50 per cent, and just 15ml of liquid (half a shot) enough to kill you.
The colourless liquid produces toxic chemicals attack the body’s cells, leading to organ damage and in some cases death.
Brits have now been warned about the hazards of methanol poisoning in South East Asia but incidents are known in holiday destinations far closer to home
Experts have warned holiday makers to watch out for subtle symptoms of the problem which include confusion, dizziness, drowsiness, vomiting, vision changes and abdominal and muscle pain.
Many of these mimic signs of alcohol poisoning but vision change,s due to the way the substance damages sensitive cells in the eyes, is considered one key difference.
While sporadic cases occur semi-regularly in South East Asia and Central America, incidents far closer to Britain have been recorded.
Turkish authorities and local media have reported dozens of cases of locals being killed and tourists being hospitalised due to unknowingly drinking counterfiet alcohol laced with methanol.
One of the most famous incidents occurred in 2011, when four Russian nationals died, and almost two dozen more were sickened after they were served a tainted whisky bottle on a yacht.
Turkish authorities arrested 22 people and seized thousands of bottles of bootleg spirits after shutting down an organised group supplying the counterfeit spirits in relation to the incident.
Medics in the country have also warned the problem posed by methanol consumption linked to fake spirits is on the rise.
Turkish doctors published a study earlier this year in which they noted over half of 15 recent victims of methanol poisoning had died, and called on authorities to crack down on the scandal.
Australian Holly Bowles (pictured), 19, was on holiday with her schoolfriend in the popular backpacking destination of Vang Vieng – she has sadly become the sixth person to die
Simone White, 28, from Orpington in Kent, is the fifth tourist to have died after falling ill last week
Bianca Jones, 19, has become the fourth person to die after consuming alleged ‘methanol-laced’ drinks in Vang Vieng, Laos
The authors of the research, published in The Turkish Journal of Neurology, wrote: ‘The critical parameters to save lives in methyl alcohol poisoning are early diagnosis and timely, appropriate, and aggressive treatment.
‘Both clinical, social, and economic strategies should be developed by national authorities to combat the issue.’
Neighbouring Greece has also seen cases of methanol poisoning, including some involving Brits.
One case involved Hannah Powell from Middlesbrough who at 21 experienced blindness and kidney failure as a result of consuming a vodka cocktail laced with methanol on the Greek holiday island of Zakynthos in 2016.
Friends who were with at the time also fell ill, but not as severely.
Ms Powell never recovered her eyesight, and her mother needed to donate one of her own kidneys to her daughter to save her life.
Another incident in 2018 on the same island saw 17 British teenagers rushed to hospital after drinking alcohol that they claimed was laced with methanol.
A newspaper investigation carried out in the wake of the hospitalisations by The Sun found traces of methanol in vodka sold by bar staff in the party town of Laganas.
Hostel manager and bartender Duong Duc Toan (pictured), has claimed it wasn’t his Tiger Vodka that made the tourists sick
Spirits, sold as either shots or as part of cocktails, most often become laced with methanol via counterfeit alcohol supplies.
Criminal gangs use methanol, which is cheaper to make than real alcohol, to stretch supplies and increase the potency when added in small amounts.
They can then sell this knock-off booze to bars in bottles with fake labels that resemble real brands of vodka and whiskey for cheaper than the real thing.
Spelling mistakes, or poor-quality printed labels, are considered one of the key warning signs a spirit may be contaminated with methanol.
Recent warnings about the toxin have centred on a mass poisoning incident in Laos which last night claimed its six victim, 19-year-old Holly Bowles from Australia.
Her death follows that of her friend Bianca Jones, also 19, as well as British lawyer Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent.
Three other fatalities — two Danes and one American — have also been recorded in relation to the drinks served in the Laotian town Vang Vieng, which is popular with backpackers.
At least 11 other people are thought to remain in hospital.
Ms White, Ms Jones and Ms Bowles were all staying at Nana Backpackers Hostel, where they were given free shots of liquor now thought to be laced with methanol.
Now the manager of the hostel, Duong Duc Toan, has reportedly been detained by local police.
Authorities said a ‘number of’ people had been taken into custody, but no charges have yet been filed.
Staff previously vehemently denied shots given at their bar were responsible for the mass poisoning.
Ms White’s friend, Bethany Clarke, a healthcare worker also from Orpington, took to the Laos Backpacking Facebook group to warn other travellers.
She said: ‘Urgent — please avoid all local spirits. Our group stayed in Vang Vieng and we drank free shots offered by one of the bars. Just avoid them as so not worth it. Six of us who drank from the same place are in hospital currently with methanol poisoning.’
Ms Clarke added that she became ‘very fatigued and then fainted, then just felt nauseous and then my liver started to shut down’ after drinking contaminated alcohol.
She continued: ‘I got to the private hospital in time but underwent many infusions and tablets and days of recovery.’
Toan, who served shots to Ms Jones and Ms Bowles, denied it was his Tiger Vodka that made the girls sick.
He claims he only buys alcohol from legitimate sellers and even drank from a bottle himself to ‘prove it was safe’.
Toan added the free shots were offered to around 100 guests and said there had been no other complaints.
