Officials in several countries are warning of the dangers of consuming alcoholic drinks that contain methanol after the recent deaths of at least six tourists who had traveled to Laos.
Several of the tourists had visited Vang Vieng, a small town popular with backpackers that has tried to move past its reputation as a destination for drug use and partying. At least two had been given free shots of vodka at a hostel there, The Associated Press reported. In 2012, the Lao government, concerned about drug use and excessive drinking in Vang Vieng, closed all the bars there.
Experts said that methanol was sometimes found in bootleg liquor or added to cheap drinks, and that even small amounts could be fatal.
A hostel is under scrutiny.
The U.S. Embassy in Laos said on Friday that it was aware of “a number of cases of suspected methanol poisoning in Vang Vieng, possibly through the consumption of methanol-laced alcoholic drinks.” The State Department said that an American had died in Vang Vieng, but did not offer further details.
The A.P. reported that two Australians who had been in Vang Vieng were sickened after they were among a group of more than 100 guests who were given free shots of Lao vodka at the Nana Backpacker Hostel. Australia’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, later confirmed that two Australians, Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, had died after they were taken to Thailand for treatment.
Denmark’s Foreign Ministry said that two Danish citizens had died in Laos but did not specify whether the deaths were linked to methanol poisoning.
Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said that it was supporting the family of a British woman who had died in Laos. And New Zealand’s Foreign Ministry said that its embassy in Bangkok, which oversees Laos, had been contacted by a citizen who was ill and had most likely suffered methanol poisoning in Laos.
It was not immediately clear if any Lao citizens had been sickened.
The A.P. reported that an officer at Vang Vieng’s Tourism Police office, who refused to give his name, said that a “number of people” had been detained in the case, but that no charges had been filed. Staff members at the Nana Backpacker Hostel confirmed that the manager and owner were among those taken in for questioning, The A.P. reported.
What is methanol and why is it dangerous?
Methyl alcohol, or methanol, is a clear liquid chemical used in many products, including windshield washer fluid, antifreeze and paint thinner.
When it appears in alcoholic drinks it is usually as an accidental byproduct of the distillation process when people make bootleg or home-brew liquor, said Dr. Maryann Amirshahi, medical director of the National Capital Poison Center in Washington, D.C. Mass poisonings have been reported in places where people make their own liquor because it’s cheaper than store-bought liquor or where alcohol sales are restricted by the government.
The Methanol Institute, a trade group, said that methanol had also been used to make cheap, counterfeit drinks because it is less expensive than ethyl alcohol, or ethanol — the alcohol in beer, wine and spirits.
When people drink methanol, the body turns it into highly toxic formic acid, which can lead to organ failure, blindness and death. Dr. Amirshahi said people might initially believe they are drunk or hung over, which makes early treatment difficult.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the symptoms of methanol poisoning can take an hour to 72 hours to develop, and may include confusion, headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting and the inability to coordinate muscle movement.
Dr. Christine Stork, a clinical toxicologist and former clinical director of the Upstate New York Poison Center in Syracuse, N.Y., said that as little as one or two ounces of methanol could be fatal.
Dr. Amirshahi called it “a very significant toxin.”
“You don’t need a lot to get really sick,” she said. “And even if you don’t die if you drink methanol, you can have very serious outcomes.”
What can people do to stay safe?
People cannot usually smell or taste methanol in their drinks, often because it is mixed with ethyl alcohol, Dr. Amirshahi said. But there are several precautions that people could take to reduce the risk of poisoning, experts said. Dr. Stork recommended that travelers in Laos avoid hard liquor altogether.
The U.S. Embassy in Laos urged Americans to buy alcoholic beverages and drinks from licensed liquor stores, bars and hotels and to avoid homemade alcoholic drinks. It also recommended checking liquor bottles for signs of tampering or counterfeiting, such as labels with poor print quality or incorrect spelling.
Dr. Stork said that methanol poisoning could be treated with an antidote called fomepizole and with hemodialysis, which filters a patient’s blood. But Dr. Amirshahi said that such treatments might be hard to find in some countries or remote areas without easy access to medical facilities.
“The big thing is, you want to be careful when you go other places because you never know,” she said. “It should be treated and caught early, but there’s often a lot of delays, and that’s the thing that’s most dangerous.”
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