A teenager from Australia has died while another is battling for her life in hospital on Thursday after a suspected mass methanol poisoning in Laos, said Australia’s prime minister.
Bianca Jones, 19 died after drinking tainted alcohol during a backpacking holiday in in Vang Vieng in Laos while her friend Holly Bowles and a British woman are reportedly on life support in hospital, reported Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The two women are among 14 people who are seriously ill after drinking spiked alcohol.
The news of Jones’ demise comes hours after the US State Department said an American man died in the tourist town of Vang Vieng.
The incident comes in a series of such instances including two Danish women, aged 19 and 20, who died last week in the South East Asian country.
While the deaths are under police investigation, news reports and testimonies from fellow tourists suggest they may have consumed drinks laced with methanol, a deadly substance often found in bootleg alcohol.
“Tragically, Bianca Jones has lost her life. Our first thoughts at this moment are with her family and friends who are grieving a terrible and cruel loss,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament, reported AFP.
“We also take this moment to say that we are thinking of Bianca’s friend Holly Bowles who is fighting for her life,” Albanese said.
The US State Department said it was “closely monitoring” the situation in connection with the American victim and added that it was up to local authorities to ascertain the cause of death.
Australian and UK authorities issued warnings to their citizens to be careful of methanol poisoning when consuming alcohol in Laos.
Nana Backpacker hostel, where the two Australian women were staying in Vang Vieng, told the BBC that it was closed for police investigation.
The hostel’s manager told the Associated Press that the two Australian tourists were among 100 guests who received free shots of Lao vodka from the hostel. The duo then went out for the night, adding that no other guests reported health issues.
Vang Vieng, a famous tourist destination in Laos was once notorious for backpackers behaving badly at jungle parties before it re-branded as an eco-tourism destination.