On November 18, the BBC reported on the death of six tourists after drinking free alcohol in Bang Bieng, Laos, and delivered the testimony of a British man in his 20s who survived the incident. He drank free whiskey and vodka mixed with soda at a hostel in Laos.
Soon after moving to Vietnam, he felt something wrong with his body. “I couldn’t read the letters at all because the view flashed like a kaleidoscope.” When I arrived at my hotel in Vietnam, I remembered asking my friends to “turn on the lights” even though the room lights were on due to complete darkness of vision.
He recovered his eyesight after medical treatment. “Six people died that day, two of them were acquaintances of mine,” he said. “There should be no tragedy of losing friends to methanol poisoning.” Two Australians, two Danes, an American, and a British man died at the time. Autopsies showed high levels of methanol in their bodies.
Methanol is an industrial alcohol used in cleaning agents and antifreeze, which smells similar to ethanol but is highly toxic. When entering the body, headaches, vomiting, and vision damage appear, and even small amounts of intake can be fatal.
Laos police arrested seven hostel managers and employees shortly after the incident, but they denied the charges, saying, “About 100 people drank on the day, but only some showed symptoms.” The BBC said he is currently recovering from training on a cane and a guide dog. “I’m lucky just to be alive,” he said. “If you’re a traveler, avoid free alcohol or cheap distilled liquor, and drink local beer.”
However, methanol accidents have been repeated in many parts of Southeast Asia. Two foreign tourists died in Vietnam’s Hoi An in December last year and four people were hospitalized in Thailand in June of the same year. In May, 21 people died due to methanol smuggling in India.
JENNIFER KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
