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At least five people died and three others were hospitalized in Sri Lanka after consuming illegal alcohol, according to a police spokesperson from this island country, reported to EFE.
The Media Unit of the Sri Lanka Police specified that the bodies of two people were found near a tavern where illegal alcohol was being consumed, in the coastal town of Wennappuwa, in the Northwest province.
Another of the victims died in a house near the venue. The other two deceased died in the hospital, where three people are being treated.
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"Police have arrested a 70-year-old woman connected to the case," said the police spokesman, who added that further investigations are underway to determine if more people were involved in the alcohol distribution case.
Asia has the world's highest rate of methanol poisoning, with Indonesia, India, and Vietnam leading the way, according to the organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
Typically, poisonings occur when alcohol is adulterated with methanol.
The initial symptoms of intoxication by this substance are drowsiness and instability, and may subsequently escalate to dizziness, headache and abdominal pain, as well as seizures, cardiorespiratory arrest and even death. Methanol, also known as wood alcohol, is a colorless alcohol with a mild odor, commonly used as a solvent, fuel, or antifreeze in the chemical industry and is not suitable for human consumption. In February 2025, two tourists, from the United Kingdom and Germany, died after suddenly falling ill while staying at a hostel in Colombo. In 2024, the last year for which complete records are available, Sri Lanka received more than two million tourists. According to statistics from the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, the United Kingdom was the third country that sent the most tourists to the island that year, behind India and Russia.
