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| No methanol or illicit drugs in alcohol served at Fijian resort where Australians fell ill, tests find | No methanol or illicit drugs in alcohol served at Fijian resort where Australians fell ill, tests find |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| Australia urged to remove the word ‘spike’ from its recently upgraded travel warning to the popular Pacific holiday destination | |
| A test of drinks consumed by seven people in Fiji who fell ill and were hospitalised found no illicit substances or methanol, officials said. | A test of drinks consumed by seven people in Fiji who fell ill and were hospitalised found no illicit substances or methanol, officials said. |
| The deputy prime minister and minister for tourism, Viliame Gavoka, said tests found no evidence of illicit drugs or excess alcohol in the drinks served to seven people, including four Australians, at the Warwick resort on Saturday night. | The deputy prime minister and minister for tourism, Viliame Gavoka, said tests found no evidence of illicit drugs or excess alcohol in the drinks served to seven people, including four Australians, at the Warwick resort on Saturday night. |
| “I can confirm that no illicit substances or methanol were found in the … ingredients or liquor samples,” he said. “We also pleased to inform you that all of the affected tourists and the local have now been discharged from medical care, fully recovered. | “I can confirm that no illicit substances or methanol were found in the … ingredients or liquor samples,” he said. “We also pleased to inform you that all of the affected tourists and the local have now been discharged from medical care, fully recovered. |
| “This is a significant relief and we are grateful for the swift medical attention and care provided to the visitors during this incident.” | “This is a significant relief and we are grateful for the swift medical attention and care provided to the visitors during this incident.” |
| The drinks were previously reported to be pina coladas. In an earlier briefing to media, Gavoka said there were “many pina coladas served that evening”. | |
| The toxicology reports for the seven affected people is still under way. Officials indicated the detail from that investigation will first be provided to the patients before it is made public. | |
| The seven people affected presented with symptoms including nausea and vomiting, intestinal issues, as well as some neurological symptoms. The toxicology testing is examining whether it was a chemical issue or an infection. | The seven people affected presented with symptoms including nausea and vomiting, intestinal issues, as well as some neurological symptoms. The toxicology testing is examining whether it was a chemical issue or an infection. |
| Earlier in the week Fiji officials said the incident was localised to one bar at the resort, and it was the only reported case in recent memory. | Earlier in the week Fiji officials said the incident was localised to one bar at the resort, and it was the only reported case in recent memory. |
| Australia has revised its travel advice for Fiji, warning travellers to “be alert to the potential risks around drink spiking and methanol poisoning through consuming alcoholic drinks”. | Australia has revised its travel advice for Fiji, warning travellers to “be alert to the potential risks around drink spiking and methanol poisoning through consuming alcoholic drinks”. |
| Gavoka called for those warnings to be relaxed, but said he had yet to speak directly to his counterparts in Australia or New Zealand. | Gavoka called for those warnings to be relaxed, but said he had yet to speak directly to his counterparts in Australia or New Zealand. |
| “I’ll just ask our … friends from foreign governments to please review the travel advisory. Take away the word ‘spike’ from the advisories, and take away all those precautionary stuff that could affect people making the decisions for [visiting] Fiji, so I’m asking them to try if they could review that.” | “I’ll just ask our … friends from foreign governments to please review the travel advisory. Take away the word ‘spike’ from the advisories, and take away all those precautionary stuff that could affect people making the decisions for [visiting] Fiji, so I’m asking them to try if they could review that.” |
| Despite the warning, and widespread media coverage of the incident, Gavoka said there was no indication of people cancelling plans to travel to Fiji. | Despite the warning, and widespread media coverage of the incident, Gavoka said there was no indication of people cancelling plans to travel to Fiji. |
| “What we hear is people who are in a sense of disbelief that Fiji could be spiking drinks, or Fiji could be adding some harmful stuff into the cocktails here,” he said. | |
| “So generally, there is still a lot of confidence and faith in Fiji and what happened over the last few days, the way we looked after our people, those patients, was quite phenomenal.” | |
| Gavoka said Fiji was determined to “get to the bottom of this” and would be transparent with what is found in the investigation. | |
| Two of the Australians – a mother and her teenage daughter – returned to Australia on Monday after being discharged from hospital. | Two of the Australians – a mother and her teenage daughter – returned to Australia on Monday after being discharged from hospital. |
| It comes after two Australians died in Laos from a suspected mass ethanol poisoning. | It comes after two Australians died in Laos from a suspected mass ethanol poisoning. |