The ‘mass methanol poisoning’ that killed a British lawyer and five others in Laos could claim MORE lives as 11 tourists remain in hospital after consuming lethal doses

Eleven tourists remain in hospital fighting for their lives after drinking lethal doses during a “mass methanol poisoning” in Laos that killed six more people.

British lawyer Simone White, 28, from Orpington in Kent, died after drinking free drinks allegedly laced with lethal levels of methanol.

Ms White worked as a junior associate specializing in technology and intellectual property in the London office of US law firm Squire Patton Boggs.

After completing her A-levels at St Olave’s Grammar School, she studied law at Newcastle University and then took a crash course at BPP Law School.

She was among six foreign tourists who died in a suspected mass methanol poisoning in Vang Vieng.

In addition to the six deaths, 14 tourists who had been drinking in the party town developed methanol poisoning within days of each other.

About 11 more foreign citizens remain in the hospital, fighting for their lives.

It is unclear how and where the victims were poisoned.

Ms White’s friend Bethany Clarke, a health worker also from Orpington, took to the Laos Backpacking Facebook group to warn other travellers.

She said: “Urgently – please avoid all local spirits. Our group stopped in Vang Vieng and we drank free shots offered at one of the bars.

“Just avoid them as it’s not worth it. Six of us who drank from the same place are now in hospital with methanol poisoning.”

Sue White, Simone’s “devastated” mother, told how her “kind, funny” daughter and friends took “six drinks” of Sprite before falling ill and having “difficulty breathing”.

She told The Sun how Simone and two friends rushed themselves to hospital the next day but were “dismissed” by paramedics who told them they had food poisoning.

By the time the ambulance arrived to take them to a private facility, Simone was already “delirious,” her mother said, adding: “I think basically it had already affected her brain.”

Melbourne teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, both aged 19, died after partying in the party town of Vang Viang this month after drinking tainted alcohol.

Friends vacationing on the island got sick and were unable to leave the Nana Backpacker Hostel on November 13th.

Jones and Bowles were evacuated to Thailand after seeking help from hostel staff and died a week later in separate hospitals in Bangkok, with their loved ones close by.

American tourist James Louis Hutson, 57, was found dead in his room at the Nana Backpacker Hotel in Vang Viang on November 13.

According to the Vientiane Times, hostel workers entered his room after realizing he had not left all day and found him unconscious.

The publication reported that he was taken to the hospital, and in his room, police found four empty beer bottles and two empty vodka bottles.

Meanwhile, horrifying details have emerged of two Danish women, Anne-Sophie Orkild Kooyman, 20, and Freya Wennervald Sorensen, 21, who died after it emerged they vomited blood for a couple of hours after drinking the drinks.

The disturbing final moments were a far cry from the picturesque travel photo they shared days earlier after the couple posed happily with friends in Vietnam.

The Danish girls, originally from Roskilde, a city of about 53,000 people located 35 km west of Copenhagen, were avid travellers.

After graduating from high school last June, they spent time exploring Italy and Hungary before saving up for a big trip to Southeast Asia in 2024.

In September, the couple traveled to Thailand, then went to Cambodia, then Vietnam, and then headed to Laos.

Shortly after the poisoning, the man, who had a mutual friend with Ms Sorensen and Ms Kooyman, posted a warning online urging other travelers to be careful about their drinks.

“For the last few days I have been busy with a Belgian friend looking for two girls he was traveling with,” the man wrote.

“For more than 72 hours it was not possible to establish contact, although they agreed to meet in Vang Vieng.

“The strange thing is that their last report was that they were both vomiting blood for 13 hours… They have both since died.”

According to local police reports obtained by the Sydney Morning Herald, Ms Sorensen and Ms Kooyman had been drinking at the hostel before going to local bars on the evening of November 12.

They returned around midnight but spent the next day in their room until they were found unconscious on the bathroom floor around 6 p.m.

In a coma, they were taken to Vang Vieng Hospital and then transferred to a hospital in the capital Vientiane. They were reportedly pronounced dead around 3:30 am on the 14th.

The Laotian government recently broke its silence on the mass poisonings and vowed to “bring those responsible to justice.”

Officials said they were “deeply saddened” and expressed their “deepest condolences” to the families of the victims.

“The government of Lao PDR is deeply saddened by the death of foreign tourists in the Vang Vieng district of Vientiane province and expresses sincere sympathy and deepest condolences to the families of the victims,” the statement said.

“The Government of Lao PDR is conducting an investigation to determine the causes of the incident and bring those responsible to justice in accordance with the law.

“The Government of Lao PDR reiterates that it always attaches great importance and attention to the safety of both domestic and foreign tourists.”

Following news of Ms Jones’ death, local police visited Nana Backpackers to question staff.

Police asked to check what alcoholic drinks were consumed by bar staff on the evening when Ms Jones and Ms Bowles were given free cocktails, The Herald Sun reported.

Laotian police were seen talking to staff and checking liquor bottles at the bar during their visit to the dormitory.

Hostel owner Duong Duc Toan is reportedly among “scores of people” detained by police for questioning, but no charges have yet been laid.

But he and hostel bartender Toan Van Vang deny that any alcohol served at their bar was contaminated or diluted with methanol.

Toan said he purchased the alcohol from a certified distributor and that free shots of Tiger Vodka were served to about 100 guests.

The manager said he had not yet received any complaints from other tourists who received vaccinations overnight.

To prove his point, he even took a sip from one of the bottles of vodka used that evening to prove its safety.