蜜芽传媒

In November 2024, six people died after visiting a bar in Vang Vieng, Laos. Authorities in the country said it was a suspected mass poisoning. It made headlines around the world, but it wasn鈥檛 an isolated incident.

Every few months, reports circulate of large numbers of people falling ill or dying after a wedding or large gathering. In some cases, hundreds of people have died in individual outbreaks, with many more left blind or hospitalised.

It's happening across South East Asia, Central America and the Middle East - often in countries where drinking alcohol is frowned upon, taboo, or even illegal.

The culprit is methanol.

Matthew Hill investigates a devastating story unfolding right now with a rising death-toll, and travels to Bangladesh to meet the people on the ground urgently working to treat those affected.

Image: Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Turkish police officers inspect bottles in a liquor shop, during an operation looking for counterfeit liquor, in Beyoglu district in Istanbul on 17 January 2025 (Credit: Kemal Aslan/AFP via Getty Images)