A very harmful but widely used alcohol. Methanol is suspected of causing the deaths of five tourists, two Danes, an Australian, an American and a British woman, who allegedly consumed it during an afternoon in northwestern Laos on November 12, according to several media reports. It was the governments of their respective countries that announced their deaths, without specifying the cause.
According to British and Australian media, a group of a dozen tourists fell ill after a night of partying in the town of Vang Vieng. Several were hospitalized in neighboring Thailand.
“Foreign media report cases of accidental methanol poisoning in Vang Vieng,” writes the French embassy in Laos on its website, which “recommends the greatest caution to consumers of alcoholic products.”
Liver damage, neurological disorders…
Methanol, also called methyl alcohol, is a colorless alcohol that is often used in the manufacture of antifreeze or windshield washer fluid, varnish, or copier fluid. It is also marginally used as fuel or as fuel for small appliances.
Methanol is sometimes added to other alcohols to increase potency or reduce price, but it can cause blindness, liver damage and death. There is also talk of “neurological disorders (excitation, seizures, paralysis, etc.)”, according to the National Institute of Research and Safety (INRS), the Social Security agency in charge of preventing work-related risks.
The INRS thus specifies that methanol is “toxic” by “inhalation”, by “skin contact” and “if ingested”.
Six dead in Thailand in August
In their advice to travelers, authorities in several Western countries, such as France, warn their nationals of the risks of methanol poisoning when consuming alcohol in Laos.
The British Foreign Office reports “cases of death and serious illness caused by alcoholic drinks containing methanol”, mainly counterfeits of well-known brands of vodka or local spirits.
In August, six people died and around twenty were hospitalized in Thailand after drinking smuggled alcohol containing methanol.
Vang Vieng, in the Vientiane province of northwestern Laos, is popular with young people who enjoy backpacking and adventure sports. The city, once famous for the bad behavior of young tourists at jungle parties, has recently revived its reputation as an ecotourism destination.
Source: BFM TV
