A British lawyer is in hospital after she was served a drink allegedly containing the poisonous substance methanol while on holiday in Laos.
Simone White, 28, was one of at least 10 tourists who fell ill in Vang Vieng, a popular backpacker destination last week with suspected alcohol poisoning.
Police in the south-east Asian country are investigating the incident on Nov 12, which has already claimed the lives of two Danish women in their 20s and an American.
Methanol is a cheap form of alcohol that can be lethal even in small doses.
Ms White, who is from Orpington, Kent, is an intellectual property and technology lawyer for American law firm Squire Patton Boggs, according to her LinkedIn profile.
The Telegraph understands Ms White is currently in hospital.
Bethany Clarke, a friend of Ms White’s, warned other travellers to “avoid all local spirits” on a Facebook group for backpackers in Laos and said she was amongst a group of six who had been taken to hospital with “methanol poisoning”.
“Urgent – please avoid all local spirits,” she wrote. “Our group stayed in Vang Vieng and we drank free shots offered by one of the bars.
“Just avoid them as [they are] so not worth it. Six of us who drank from the same place are in hospital currently with methanol poisoning.”
Duong Duc Toan, the manager of Nana Backpacker Hostel in Vang Vieng, said he had served more than 100 guests on the night of Nov 12 with free shots of Lao Tiger vodka mixed with ice and Coke Zero.
But he denied that the alcohol was tainted and said the hostel had not sold or given away drinks which caused the travellers to fall ill.
“We don’t do anything wrong, for sure,” Mr Toan told Australian broadcaster ABC. “I really take care of all of the customers [who] stay with our hotel and our hostel.”
Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US State Department confirmed the three deaths to The Telegraph.
A pair of Australian friends, Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, are recovering in hospital in neighbouring Thailand after the incident.
The women, both aged 19, were visiting from Melbourne, Victoria, and had been drinking at the hostel and elsewhere on the evening of Nov 12.
On Wednesday, Ms Bowles’ father, Shaun, told reporters outside Bangkok Hospital that his daughter remained in a critical condition.
“Right now our daughter remains in an intensive care unit, in critical condition, she’s on life support,” he said.
“We would just like to thank everyone from back home for all their support and love that we are receiving.”
In a statement, Ms Jones’ family said they were “here by Bianca’s bedside praying for her”.
“We hope the authorities can get to the bottom of what happened as soon as possible,” the family said.
In a statement, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “We are providing consular assistance to British nationals and their families and are in contact with the local authorities following an incident in Laos.”
A spokesman for Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs can confirm that two Danish citizens have passed away in Laos. For reasons of confidentiality in personal matters the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has no further comments.”