Australian teenager Bianca Jones has become the fourth tourist to die in a suspected mass poisoning in Laos.
The family of the 19-year-old young woman confirmed her death to the media on Thursday. Hours earlier, the US State Department told media that an American had died in the tourist town of Vang Vieng.
Two Danish women, aged 19 and 20, also died last week in Laos, authorities confirmed, while Jones' friend Holly Bowles and a British woman are believed to be on life support in hospital.
The deaths are still under police investigation, but reports and testimonies from other tourists suggest they may have consumed drinks containing methanol, a deadly substance often found in moonshine.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the Foreign Office had confirmed Ms Jones' death.
“Our first thoughts at this time are with his family and friends who are grieving a terrible and cruel loss,” Albanese said Thursday afternoon.
“It’s every parent’s worst fear and a nightmare no one should have to endure.”
He said he hoped Ms Bowles, who is currently in hospital in Bangkok, would recover well.
The US State Department said it was “closely monitoring” the situation regarding the American victim, adding that it was up to local authorities to determine the cause of death.
Australian and British authorities have each warned their citizens to watch out for methanol poisoning when consuming alcohol in Laos.
The Nana Backpacker Hostel, where the two Australians were staying in Vang Vieng, told the BBC it had been closed for police investigations.
The hostel manager told The Associated Press that the two women were among more than 100 guests who received free glasses of Laotian vodka from the hostel. The two men then left for the night, he said, adding that no other guests reported health problems.
The manager said he hoped the investigation would clear the hostel's name, but said they had stopped giving free photos for now.
In a statement to Australian newspaper Herald Sun, Ms Jones' family expressed their “deepest gratitude for the support, love and prayers we have received from across Australia”.
“We kindly ask for privacy as we work through our grief and begin to heal,” the statement said.
Unlike ethanol, a key component of alcoholic beverages, methanol is toxic to humans. Moonshine producers sometimes add it to their drinks, as an inexpensive way to increase the alcohol content.
Earlier this year, at least 57 people died in India after drinking alcohol containing methanol. Similar cases of mass poisoning have also been reported across the world, from the Philippines to Peru.
Vang Vieng is a small riverside town in central Laos and a backpacker hub in Southeast Asia.
