Suspected drink poisoning at Fiji resort leaves tourism operators ‘mystified’ but they reject claims of malice

The five-star resort at the centre of a suspected alcohol poisoning incident in Fiji is “mystified” how seven guests fell critically ill after drinking a cocktail at its bar, but insists there was no foul play in the incident.

As the paradise island’s tourist industry on Monday spun into damage control mode, scientific experts also cautioned against jumping to immediate conclusions about methanol contamination before a full toxicology analysis of the drinks samples.

“There’s lots of potential things that this might be,” Nicholas Buckley, a professor of clinical pharmacology at Sydney University, told the Nightly.

People were “highly attuned” to the possibility that this could be linked to methanol after the devastating case of Melbourne teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, who died after drinking tainted alcohol at a backpacking resort in Laos last month, he said. “But on this occasion, it may or may not be.”

Four Australian women were among seven people taken to hospital in Fiji on Saturday night experiencing “nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms”, after drinking pina coladas at The Warwick resort.

A 56-year-old woman has been under constant surveillance in hospital and a 19-year-old woman is also experiencing serious medical episode. Two other Australian women, 49 and 18-years-old are critical but not as serious.

Authorities quickly commenced an investigation into the mass illness, amid fears it could be a case of alcohol poisoning — akin to the methanol poisoning tragedy in Laos.

Fiji’s has sent drinks samples to Australia for analysis, reported the country’s FBC news on Monday.

Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Viliame Gavoka said in a statement that authorities have been working with the resort which said the drinks were not tampered with.

“The resort management has assured us that they have not engaged in practices such as substituting ingredients or altering the quality of drinks served to guest,” Mr Gavoka said.

“The incident occurred at only one bar, and it involved seven tourists, ranging in age from young to older, who fell ill.

“The resort management shares our concerns and is fully cooperating with the Ministry of Health and other authorities to identify what happened and to ensure the safety of all future guests.”

He insisted this was a very “isolated incident.”

Prof. Buckley said media reports so far did not indicate those affected by the cocktails had experienced a key symptom of methanol poisoning - visual problems.

“The key thing that methanol does is it poisons the retina in your eye, and so people get blurred vision, a kind of snowstorm appearance...hate bright lights, and can go completely blind,” he said.

“People can get really sick for all sorts of reasons overseas - infections, food poisoning. Very little else causes visual problems.”

Tourism Fiji chief executive Brent Hill said while he could not speculate on what had made the visitors fall so ill due to the ongoing investigation, there was no immediate sign this was a “malicious” act.

“We are dealing with a reputable resort that has many hundreds, if not thousands, of guests travelling through it,” Mr Hill told The Nightly.

“Of all their bars, of all the pina coladas they served, the resort is mystified how it (this incident) happened.”

He said the resort had handed over CCTV footage to authorities and its staff were fully complying with the investigation.

“Of course they are interested in trying to get to the bottom of this,” he added.

Mr Hill said it was a good sign that three of the visitors had been discharged from hospital and were “in the process of returning home”, while four others were in a “stable condition and are certainly responding well to treatment”.

“Immediately we thought to the tragic incident in Laos, but even the early evidence in this case shows that this is very different to that,” he said.

“Obviously, everyone concerned is quite devastated that tourists had fallen ill and they take it very personally.

“Tourism means an incredible lot to them, and the resort management are adamant that there wasn’t any indication of any substituting of ingredients or anything malicious that they could see.”

Tourism is the lifeblood of the Fijian economy. It contributes about 40 per cent of GDP — about $1.7 billion per year — and provides employment for more than 120,000 people.

Of the estimated one million visitors who flock to the Pacific paradise each year, almost half are Australians, followed by New Zealanders and Americans.

Australian Travel Industry Association chief executive Dean Long said in the last 12 months 405,000 Australians had visited Fiji.

“Tourism is a very important driver of Fiji’s economy and the government will take this situation very seriously and ensure those responsible are brought to justice,” Mr Long said.

He said this incident showed that “things can go wrong” even to travellers who are fit, healthy and staying at a five-star resort.

This is the second drinks-related mass illness to befall Australian tourists in weeks — after six people died from a mass methanol poisoning at a hostel in Laos in November.

Labor frontbencher Jason Clare said this Fiji incident had a “real terrifying sense of deja vu”.

“When we wake up to hear this horrific news in Fiji, I’m sure all Australians have their heart in mouth and are hoping for the best,” he said on Monday.

The incident prompted the Australian Government to update its Smartraveller advisory for Fiji, warning tourists to “exercise normal safety precautions” but be “alert to the potential risks around drink spiking and methanol poisoning”.

“Don’t leave food or drinks unattended, and pay attention when your drinks are being mixed. Get urgent medical help if you suspect drink spiking,” the advisory said.

Mr Hill said while he understood why the warning was issued, and while he wished Fiji’s record remained pristine, he was certain this was a “one-off incident”.

“Fiji prides itself on safety and service, and we’re hoping it will emerge that this was not malicious,” he said.

“We want to reassure people they can feel safe about being here and take normal precautions. We are sure this is a very one-off incident, certainly no one in living memory can recall something like this happening here.”

While the Laos tragedy raised the profile of methanol poisoning among tourists, globally thousands of people suffer from the condition every year, according to Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF).

Asia has the highest prevalence of methanol poisoning, with outbreaks commonly occurring in Indonesia, India, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines. If not treated, fatality rates are often reported to be 20 to 40 per cent.

The best way to protect yourself would be to avoid drinking spirits in low and middle income countries, said Prof. Buckley.

Symptoms had a delayed onset, when your body started to convert methanol into formaldehyde, and the key differentiation with a hangover or another illness was visual symptoms, he said.

An immediate First Aid measure would be to drink safe alcohol like beer or wine to buy some time to get to a hospital, he advised. “It’s not a permanent cure, but it gives you that extra few hours.”