Teenager and 3 Other Tourists Die from Tainted Alcohol in Backpacker Town

Four people have died — including a teenager — after drinking alcohol that authorities say was tainted with methanol.

An American, two Danish tourists, and a 19-year old from Australia — Bianca Jones — have died, while multiple people were sickened in Vang Vieng, a town popular with backpackers and tourists in Laos, the Associated Press says.

Jones’ cause of death was listed as “brain swelling due to high levels of methanol found in her system,” the AP says.

A friend who was traveling with Jones, Holly Bowles, 19, remains on life support and is in critical condition.

While methanol can be inadvertently produced during the brewing process, The Guardian says it’s often illegally added to drinks to help increase the alcohol content.

It’s a colorless, watery liquid, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, and symptoms of methanol poisoning resemble over-consumption of alcohol, like nausea, dizziness, loss of consciousness, and vomiting.  

“Fatal cases often present with fast heart rate (tachycardia) or slow heart rate (bradycardia) and an increased rate of respiration,” the CDC says. “Low blood pressure (hypotension) and respiratory arrest occur when death is imminent.”

According to the AP, it’s often added to mixed drinks to lower the bar’s alcohol costs.

“Drink spiking and methanol poisoning are far too common in many parts of the world,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said after receiving news of Jones’ death, the AP says.

Seventy people died in Mexico in 2020 from methanol-tainted alcohol. In 2022, 21 teenagers died in South Africa after drinking at a tavern; their blood all showed levels of methanol at the time of their death. And in 2019, at least 19 people were killed by tainted alcohol in Costa Rica.

Wong’s statement continued: “At this time I would say to parents, to young people, please have a conversation about risks, please inform yourselves, please let’s work together to ensure this tragedy doesn’t happen again.”

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