Methanol is a
toxic alcohol to humans via ingestion due to metabolism. If as little as 10 ml of pure methanol is ingested, for example, it can break down into
formic acid, which can cause permanent
blindness by destruction of the
optic nerve, and 30 ml is potentially fatal,[2] although the median lethal dose is typically 100 ml (3.4 fl oz) (i.e. 1–2 ml/kg body weight) of pure methanol.[3] This does not happen with
ethanol, which breaks down into
acetic acid, which is non-toxic in small amounts.
Reference dose for methanol is 0.5 mg/kg/day.[4] Toxic effects take hours to start, and effective antidotes, like
ethanol, can often prevent permanent damage.[2] Because of its similarities in both appearance and odor to
ethanol (the
alcohol in beverages), it is difficult to differentiate between the two.
Australia
In 2013 three people died and one suffered partial blindness when they ingested a home-made beverage containing methanol.[5]
In 1997 two people from
Central Australia died and two survived after ingesting a drink made from methanol and other alcoholic beverages.[6]
Brazil
In 1999, 35 people died, in ten cities of the state of
Bahia as a result of drinking
cachaça contaminated with methanol. Further investigation revealed concentrations as high as 24.84% methanol. As other different cases have also been related, in a 20-day window there have been 450 people hospitalized with the toxicity symptoms of methanol ingestion.[7]
Cambodia
In 2012, 49 people died, and more than 300 people were hospitalized, after drinking
rice wine contaminated by methanol.[8]
Costa Rica
25 persons died in August 2019 due to methanol poisoning.[9]
In
El Salvador, as many as 122 people died in 2000 as a result of drinking low quality liquors sold in unauthorized shops that were found to be adulterated with methanol.[14] The incident prompted the authorities to declare a 10-day emergency
prohibition and a massive inspection of alcohol-vending establishments. The root cause was believed to be an act of
terrorism, possibly a social cleansing campaign targeted against alcoholics,[15] as the offending distilleries were not found to be responsible for the methanol contents that were present in the affected liquors.[16]
The
Pärnu methanol poisoning incident occurred in
Pärnu county,
Estonia, in September 2001, when 68 people died and 43 were left disabled after contents of stolen methanol canisters were used in production of bootleg liquor.
2012: 18 people died in
Gurdaspur district of
Punjab in a possible methanol-poisoning incident. The Chemical Analyzer and Histo-pathology department took care of the bodies and will ascertain the exact cause of death.[22]
2017: On 3 January at least 6 people died at Ramgopalpur,[24]West Bengal
2019: In February 2019, 100 people in the northern states of
Uttar Pradesh and
Uttarakhand died by drinking toxic alcohol.[25]
2019: In February 2019, just days after the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand deaths (above), 156 people (mostly tea plantation workers) died in
Assam state. see
2019 Assam alcohol poisonings
Two men were killed in a methanol poisoning incident near to
Burtonport,
County Donegal,
Republic of Ireland in 2014 after drinking what was claimed to be
poitín (an Irish
moonshine made from
potatoes).[32] One man was native Irish and the other a
Lithuanian immigrant. A bottle seized at the scene of one poisoning was found to contain 97% methanol.[33][34]
In 2017 a person was severely poisoned after buying "
vodka" from an unlicensed seller in the
Ballymun area of
Dublin; the bottle had been refilled with a liquid containing methanol.[35][36][37]
At least 51 people died in
Tripoli in 2013.[40] The consumption and sale of alcohol is illegal in Libya.[40]
Madagascar
The
Madagascar methanol mass poisoning occurred in 1998 when 200 people died.[41]
Malaysia
From September until October 2018, 45 people have been
reported died of methanol poisoning from drinking fake liquor.[42] In this incident, the methanol content was up to 50 times more than the permissible amount.[43] Cases of toxic alcohol poisoning have been reported in
Selangor, the
Federal Territories of
Kuala Lumpur and
Putrajaya,
Perak and
Negeri Sembilan.[42] The deaths comprised various nationalities mostly of
foreign workers from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Nepal.[42] Around 30 people including three Indian nationals, believed to be responsible for the distribution of cheap counterfeit liquor to retailers around
Selayang and Desa Jaya which led to the methanol poisoning incident have been arrested.[44][45]
Mexico
Government restrictions on liquor and beer sales during the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated the problem of illegal production and sale of alcoholic beverages in Mexico. Reportedly, 35 people died in 2020 in just one mass poisoning incident due to methanol tainted drinks.[46]
Morocco
Between September 28 and 29, 2022, 21 deaths occurred in the northern Moroccan city of
Ksar El Kebir.[47]
Between May 31 and June 02, 2023, 9 deaths occurred in the Moroccan city of
Meknes.[48]
Nigeria
Between April 14 and April 26, 2015, 23 deaths were recorded in relation to methanol poisoning in
Ayadi and
Ode-Irele towns of
Irele Local Government Area in
Ondo State.[49]
66 people in
Rivers State died over a few weeks that started in April 2015 due to methanol-contaminated
ogogoro.[50][51][52]
Norway
Between September 2002 and December 2004, 51 people were admitted to hospital with symptoms of methanol poisoning, of whom 9 died. A further 8 people who died outside hospital were found to have died from methanol poisoning following
autopsy. The liquor responsible for all of the cases contained 20% methanol and 80% ethanol and probably came from the same source in
southern Europe.[53]
Peru
In October 2022 in
Lima, Peru 54 people died due to consuming fruit-flavored vodka that was laced with methanol. The source of the methanol was from windshield washer fluid and antifreeze. [54]
Philippines
The Luzon lambanog deaths started to occur in late November 2018 in separate places in the Philippines after drinking
arrack (locally known in the Philippines as lambanog) in separate places in the Philippines. The case started on November 29 when the residents from
Calamba, Laguna drank lambanog and began to experience symptoms such as stomach cramps, resulting in hospital admission; they subsequently died.[55] People who consumed lambanog experienced other symptoms such as nausea, chest pains, and blurry vision. Meanwhile, another four persons, who were
tricycle drivers, were reported to have died after they consumed arrack and thirteen others were hospitalized in
Quezon City.[56]
In December 2019, at least 23 people died while around 300 were hospitalized after drinking methanol-laced
palmliquor, locally known as lambanog, in the provinces of
Laguna and
Quezon.[57][58] Separate incidents of methanol poisoning involving lambanog were also reported in 2018 which caused at least 21 deaths.[59]
Russia
In December 2016, 72 people died in a mass
methanol poisoning in Irkutsk, Siberia. The poisoning was precipitated by drinking counterfeit surrogate alcohol—actually scented bath lotion that was marked as not safe for consumption.[60] Named Boyaryshnik ("Hawthorn"),[61] it was described by the
Associated Press as being counterfeit.[62]
In October 2021, in
Orenburg, 35 people died and 33 others were poisoned in a mass
surrogate alcohol poisoning. 7 people were noted as being in serious condition, and 3 people were placed on
ventilators. 10 people were arrested for the incident.[63]
Also, in October 2021 18 people died and a number were poisoned in another mass
surrogate alcohol poisoning in
Yekaterinburg and towns nearby. Two persons were arrested.[64]
In May-June 2023, at least 30 people died and 96 were poisoned in the
Samara region by cider contaminated with methanol and
ethyl butyrate. The contaminated alcohol had reportedly been stolen from a warehouse of
the Russian Interior Ministry. Four people, including one police officer, were arrested.[65]
Serbia
In 1998,[66] 43 people died after drinking
Rakia which contained between 40-75% methanol per bottle. The case is commonly known as the "Zozovača affair".[67] There were also at least 13 people with permanent health consequences.[68]
In 1963, methanol was used in the preparation of bottled mixed alcohol drinks such as coffee liqueur. According official records, 51 died and 9 lost their sight, but according to newspapers there may have been thousands of victims, mainly in
Galicia and the
Canary Islands.[69][70]
In April 2010, 80 people died from
multiple organ dysfunction syndrome after drinking waragi
adulterated with a high amount of
methanol over a three-week period in
Kabale District.[78][79][80] Many of the deaths were blamed on the reluctance of people to openly admit their relatives had been drinking it, allowing the abuse of the substance to continue.[79][80] When revelations came about houses were searched, with around 120
jerrycans uncovered.[80]
United States
In December 1963, a rash of 31 deaths in
Philadelphia's
homeless population was traced to a local store that knowingly sold
Sterno to people for them to consume and get drunk.[81]
In January 2016, consumption of a mixture of
Mountain Dew and methanol, referred to as Dewshine, resulted in the reported deaths of two
Tennessee high school students.[82] The methanol in this case was believed to come from racing fuel.[83][84]
In April 2018, a
Massachusetts man died after ingesting alcohol that was contaminated with methanol. The product consumed was labeled "Ethanol Extraction 95% ethanol and 5% water". An FDA recall was issued and the company is no longer selling the product which was sold over the internet and shipped by the
U.S. Postal Service.[85]
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