# Second Australian teenager dies after Laos methanol poisoning outbreak, lifting toll to six
A second Australian teenager has died after the methanol poisoning outbreak linked to a trip to Vang Vieng, Laos, bringing the confirmed death toll from the incident to six. ABC News Australia reported on the event date that Holly Bowles, 19, died in a hospital in Thailand after being placed on life support following suspected methanol poisoning from drinks consumed in Laos.
Bowles's death followed that of her friend Bianca Jones, who also died after the same outbreak. The ABC report said the incident had also killed two Danish women, a US tourist and a British woman, and that more than a dozen people had fallen seriously ill. That wider toll makes the Laos episode one of the most severe recent cases of suspected tainted alcohol poisoning involving foreign travellers in Southeast Asia.
The key public-health concern in the report is methanol, a toxic industrial chemical that can be illegally added to alcoholic drinks in some countries. Unlike ethanol, methanol can be broken down by the body into compounds that attack organs and can be fatal even in small amounts. The report said that drinking as little as a shot glass of methanol can kill.
The deaths of Bowles and Jones drew an immediate response from Australian leaders. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese sent a message of support to Bowles's family, while Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the government would continue to support the families and work with local authorities on the investigation. Those statements underline that the case had become both a travel-safety crisis and a diplomatic issue for Australia.
The hostel where the two teenagers were staying before they fell ill was also drawn into the investigation. The owner of the Nana Backpacker Hostel was detained by police for questioning in Laos, according to the ABC report, though the hostel had earlier told the broadcaster that the drinks in question did not come from its bar. That leaves open a central unresolved issue: where the tainted alcohol entered the supply chain.
The Laos government had already become the focus of travel warnings after the outbreak. Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade updated its advice for Laos, warning travellers to be alert to the risks, especially with spirit-based drinks and cocktails. For backpackers and independent travellers, that warning is a reminder that drink safety is not always visible in the places that look the most casual and social.
What remains clear is that the toll did not end with the first wave of hospitalizations. The death of Bowles pushed the outbreak from a suspected poisoning incident into a larger regional tragedy with cross-border health, safety, and law-enforcement consequences.
Event date: 2024-11-22.
