What was meant to be a holiday of a lifetime ends up in tragedy. So many young people come to Asia and take risks that they shouldn't be taking, they have no idea that those who are selling them the service only care about making money. Life is cheap and most will do whatever is necessary to make money even if its puts peoples life at risk many do not care. After 40 years of travelling in SE Asia, ( currently in Northern Thailand) I've heard about so many overseas tourists coming to grief, the most common accidents is from riding motorbikes. Its a dangerous place on the roads where in Thailand one person dies every 30 minutes. There is no real law enforcement in Thailand and often see school kids as young as 10 years with 4 on a bike. One young kid I know was badly injured when he was being taken to school on a motorbike when sitting on the handlebars and the adult had 3 more kids on the back. The parents actually paid the driver to take their kids to school. Parents wonder why their kids get hurt or killed. You cannot tell them that they'd be better to let their kids walk to school, unfortunately pushbikes aren't much better.
Many people in the villages make their own alcohol and then sell to others, the standard of cleanliness is a disgrace by Western standards.
Can only hope that these two young Aussie girls recover quickly and learn a valuable lesson when travelling.
Third person dies after drinking poisoned alcohol - as Australian teens fight for their lives and lurid details about party bar's 'drug menu' comes to light
A third person has died after drinking poisoned alcohol as two Australians continue to fight for their lives in hospital.
The US State Department confirmed the death of a US citizen, aged 56, on Thursday morning in the popular Laos party town of Vang Vieng.
It is understood two Danish women in their 20s have also died, with at least a dozen people falling ill after drinks were mixed with methanol and served to hostel guests.
Australian best friends Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, both aged 19 and from Melbourne, remain in a critical condition after consuming the beverages during a gap year trip across South East Asia.
The two teens had booked in a four-night stay at Nana Backpackers Hostel, where they had been drinking and playing cards at the bar on the night they were poisoned, before reportedly going to nearby Jaidee's party bar.
CCTV from inside the hostel shows one the girls being transported to a local clinic on the back of a motorbike being driven by a hotel staff worker after failing to check out of their rooms on time.
They were then rushed to separate hospitals in Udon Thani and Bangkok in neighbouring Thailand.
It comes as the Australian government has updated its travel advice to Laos.
Australian best friends Holly Bowles (left) and Bianca Jones (right) remain fighting for life after consuming the beverages.
'Be alert to the potential risks particularly with spirit-based drinks including cocktails,' the government's smarttraveller.gov.au website warns.
It advises travellers to seek more information about the 'risks around methanol poisoning as well as drink spiking'.
A man who helped the girls told the Herald Sun they had been drinking at Jaidee's bar on the beachfront in Vang Vieng.
The infamous party bar, which offers free spirits, also has a hard copy 'drug menu', offering patrons opium, ecstasy and ketamine.
There is no suggestion the girls took any drugs whatsoever.
Their parents are now at their bedsides, with the family of Ms Jones revealing their hope that local police get to the bottom of the alleged mass poisoning swiftly.
'Our family has been overwhelmed by the messages of love and support that have come from across Australia,' they told the Herald Sun.
'This is every parent's nightmare and we want to ensure no other family is forced to endure the anguish we are going through.
'We hope the authorities can get to the bottom of what happened as soon as possible.'
Ms Bowles' father, Shaun Bowles, said his family was spending every minute possible by Holly's side.
'Right now our daughter remains in an intensive care unit, in critical condition, she's on life support,' he told reporters outside Bangkok Hospital on Wednesday.
'We would just like to thank everyone from back home for all their support and love that we are receiving.
'We would also like for people to appreciate right now, we just need privacy so we can spend as much time as we can with Holly.'
Just days before they fell ill, the pair had been happily documenting their trip in social media videos of themselves surveying jungle views, singing karaoke, riding jetskis and generally having a great time.
Nana Backpackers Hostel manager Duong Duc Toan, who served the girls Laotian vodka, has claimed it wasn't his Tiger Vodka that made the girls sick.
Toan said he bought the alcohol from a certified distributor and insisted it had not been tainted by himself or his staff.
He said the shots, a gesture of hospitality, were served to about 100 guests and that the hostel had not received any other complaints.
To prove his point, the bartender drank from one of the vodka bottles that were in use on the night to prove it was safe.
Toan said Holly and Bianca were at the bar playing cards from 8pm to 10.30pm and had three drinks each in that time.
He poured them a Lao Pdr Tiger Vodka containing 40 per cent alcohol and mixed it with ice and Coke Zero.
'Right now the police [are telling] every hostel and hotel and bar to stop selling drinks in Vang Vieng,' he told the Associated Press.
Laos police have launched an investigation.
