peso 888 Laos government says ‘profoundly saddened’ by tourist deaths

This photo shows the logo of the Bangkok Hospital in Bangkok on November 21, 2024. Agence France-Presse

BANGKOK — The Laos government said Saturday it was “profoundly saddened” by the deaths of foreign tourists in Vang Vieng, with the toll from a suspected methanol poisoning incident now at six.

A statement posted on its Ministry of Foreign Affairs website said it expressed “sincere sympathy and deepest condolences to the families of the deceased”, adding an investigation was underway to find the cause of the incident.

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Six tourists died of suspected methanol poisoning after a night out in the Laos backpacker hotspot of Vang Vieng last week.

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READ: Tainted alcohol case in Laos: 2nd Australian teen dies

The two Danish citizens, an American, a Briton and two Australians were among a group of about a dozen foreigners who fell ill shortly after November 12.

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Australian officials are pressing Laotian authorities for a full and transparent investigation into what happened.

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Vang Vieng has been a fixture on the Southeast Asia backpacker trail since Laos’ secretive communist rulers opened the country to tourism decades ago.

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The town was once synonymous with backpackers behaving badly at jungle parties but has since re-branded as an eco-tourism destination.

The Vietnamese manager of the Nana Backpackers Hostel has been detained for questioning, the Laos tourist police told AFP.

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READ: 4 dead, including American, Aussie tourists, in fatal Laos alcohol poisoning

No charges have been made, however.

Police in Laos could not be reached for comment on Saturday.

A spokesman for Thailand’s foreign ministry expressed condolences for the death of the second Australian who had been transported to Thailand from Laos “for treatment for methanol poisoning” in a statement posted on X Saturday.

Alcohol tainted with methanol is suspected to be the cause of the deaths.

Methanol is a toxic alcohol that can be added to liquor to increase its potency but can cause blindness, liver damage and death.

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On their travel advice websitespeso 888, UK and Australian authorities have warned their citizens to beware of methanol poisoning while consuming alcohol in Laos.

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