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Seven tourists hospitalised in Fiji from suspected alcohol poisoning

16 December 2024 07:20 (UTC +04:00)

Seven tourists including four Australians were hospitalised in a suspected case of alcohol poisoning at a resort in Fiji, the Australian and Fijian governments said on Monday, APA reports citing Reuters.

The tourists became ill after drinking a cocktail at a resort on the south coast of Viti Levu island, Fiji's government said in a statement.

Local media named the resort as the Warwick Fiji on the Coral Coast, an area popular with foreign tourists.

As South Korea's acting president, Han Duck-soo, moved on Sunday to reassure the country's allies and calm financial markets, conservative supporters were praying for his impeached boss, Yoon Suk Yeol.

"This is an extremely isolated incident, affecting only these seven guests at a specific bar within the resort," the Fiji government said.

Last month six foreign tourists died after consuming contaminated alcohol in Laos.

Management at the resort said it had not substituted ingredients or altered the quality of drinks served to guests, the statement said.

"While we understand the concern, we want to emphasise that the tourism experience in Fiji is typically very safe, and we have acted immediately to try and discover the cause of what made these guests, at this resort, fall ill," Fiji's government said.

The Australian government has updated its travel advice for Fiji to flag dangers of drink spiking, and warned Australians more generally about the risk of alcohol poisoning when travelling.

"If Australians are travelling, be very alert to the potential risks in this case around drink spiking and alcohol poisoning," Chalmers said.