RMC TESTIMONY. Six tourists have died in Laos after being poisoned by adulterated alcohol. Lola, a French traveler, discovered that she had stayed with two of her friends in one of the incriminated hostels a few months ago. They had been sick for several days.
Six tourists have died in Laos after being poisoned by adulterated alcohol. The deaths occurred in Vang Vieng, a town popular with travelers. The victims are two Danes, an Englishwoman, an American and two Australians, their respective governments said. According to press information, a group of around a dozen tourists fell ill on November 12.
“Free and unlimited alcohol for 2 hours”
Lola, a French tourist, realized that she had stayed, with two of her friends, in the Nana Backpackers hostel in Vang Vieng, whose manager was placed in police custody. Like the two deceased Australian women who stopped there, they drank alcohol to the point of being sick. The Frenchwoman now realizes that she and her friends escaped death. She testifies to RMC.
The establishment had been spotted on an online reservation site. “We saw that there were good reviews, that it was a hostel where there were quite a few parties,” she remembers. When they arrive there, they notice that the alcohol is flowing freely. “Every evening, for 2 hours, alcohol was free and unlimited.” But after the excitement of the party, several tourists suddenly fell ill. The French too.
“We were really unwell, much more so than a classic ‘hangover’. One of my two friends had two drinks. One or two hours later, she felt unwell and lost consciousness,” relates Lola.
Still suffering, the three French travelers learned three days later while talking with other travelers that they had then consumed methanol, without knowing it. They will be on antibiotics for 10 days. “We are so carefree on this type of trip,” she sighs. Now, after the announcement of the death of these six tourists, Lola realizes it. “It could have been us, we could have died…”
“There are more tourists every day”
The two Australians, from Melbourne, had started to feel unwell at the hostel, according to Australian media. They drank at the hostel’s bar before going out for the evening, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported.
They did not leave their room on November 13 as planned and the hostel staff rushed them to the hospital. The Vietnamese manager of the youth hostel was taken into custody, Laotian tourist police told AFP. No charges have been filed at this stage.
“I heard the news but everything is normal here,” Michael, the Vietnamese manager of another hostel in Vang Vieng, the Rock Backpacker Rooftop Hostel, told AFP. “We are entering the high season, there are more tourists every day,” added this manager, wishing to be identified only by his first name.
Frequent poisonings in Asian countries
Present in methylated spirits such as antifreeze or even in divolvant, methanol is a chemical product which can have neurological toxicity and whose consequences can be very serious, explains Frederic Adnet, head of department of the Samu de Paris, for RMC. “The best known symptom is blindness. The toxicity attacks the ocular senses, definitely,” he specifies and calls for caution in certain Asian countries, where these poisonings are frequent.
Vang Vieng, a town in northwestern Laos once renowned for the bad behavior of young tourists during parties organized in the jungle, has recently restored its image as an ecotourism destination, recalls AFP.
Ongoing investigation
Canberra demanded from Laos a “full and transparent” investigation into the circumstances of these two deaths. The Laotian government said in a statement on Saturday that it was “deeply saddened by the deaths of foreign tourists”, expressing its “sincere sympathy” and offering its “condolences to the families of the deceased”. He said an investigation was underway “to determine the causes of the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
Ameline Lavechin with Cassandre Braud and Léo Manson
