Toxic wine kills four in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Four people died and 10 others were taken to hospital yesterday after drinking rice wine police believe was adulterated with a toxic substance.

The people were stricken in the north-western province of Banteay Meanchey after drinking the bottled beverage, a mix of wine mixed with traditional medicine, provincial police chief Gen Ath Khem said.

Dangerous, cheap alcoholic drinks are a perennial problem in the country’s poor rural areas. Often the alcohol is not distilled properly and contains methanol, which can kill even in small amounts. | AP