Summary
Four people have died, including 19-year-old Australian Bianca Jones, two Danish women in their 20s, and a 56-year-old US citizen, after suspected methanol poisoning in Vang Vieng, a popular backpacker destination in Laos.
Several others, including six British and one New Zealand traveler, remain hospitalized.
The poisoning is believed to be linked to free shots offered at a local bar, prompting warnings from travelers to avoid local spirits.
Authorities fear a mass poisoning, with investigations underway into the source of the contaminated drinks.
Feeling pretty lucky that the “free shots” when I went were apparently actually ethanol. Better to be careful but when you’re a few drinks deep, a little high and floating down a river on a tire inner tube, bad decisions do happen.
In Vang Vieng, stick to the beer and avoid any of the swings, slides and other bullshit at these riverside bars. I saw one guy literally in a full body cast because of this shit.
In Laos, the booze is cheaper than the mixers. You can get a cup of vodka for cheaper than a vodka and coke, so you can guess what the tourists drink.
Who prints darwin awards these days?
Being poisoned at a bar hardly seems to qualify
Darwin famously believed people should stay at home and not take any form of risk by traveling. It was all his time in his house reading books about nature that inspired his evolutionary theories!
Just think how close Darwin was to winning a Darwin award. What would’ve happened if the HMS Beagle was lost in a storm?!
Free shots in laos sounds like a good idea to u? Is everyone incapable of taking responsibility for themselves these days?
