3 Cambodian die, 44 others hospitalized after drinking tainted wine

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PHNOM PENH, Oct. 19, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – Three Cambodian villagers had died
and 44 others had been hospitalized in Kratie province after drinking
locally-made rice wine, which was suspicious of containing “high levels of
methanol,” police and health officials said Friday.

“Two men and a woman died on Thursday and 44 others have been subsequently
admitted to the Kratie Provincial Referral Hospital after they consumed
contaminated rice wine,” Bun Chhoeun, police chief of Sambou district in
Kratie province, told Xinhua.

The incident took place in the district’s Damre village late Wednesday
afternoon after they drank the wine following a rice harvest.

“The victims have the same symptoms: dizziness, eye irritation, nausea, and
breathing difficulty,” he said.

According to Bun Chhoeun, a rice wine producer in the village was detained
for questing over the tragedy, as a wine sample was collected for an
examination.

Ly Sovann, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health, confirmed the incident,
saying that health officials had been sent to the village and victims had
been rushed to hospital for medical treatment.

“Based on the symptoms, we initially conclude that they fell ill and died
of having rice wine containing high-levels of methanol,” he told Xinhua. “A
sample of the suspected wine had been taken for a test.”

Meanwhile, the spokesman calls on people not to drink wine that has “no
clear source,” or produces without proper techniques.

Rice wine is popular in rural areas in Cambodia due to its cheap price.

Checks on food are rare in the Southeast Asian nation, where safety
regulations are lax.

In May, methanol-laced rice wine and contaminated water left 13 people dead
and nearly 300 others hospitalized in Kratie province.