At least 48 people have died and around 100 others are receiving treatment in southern Nigeria after consuming a locally brewed alcoholic concoction suspected to contain methanol, officials said on Thursday.
Banji Ajaka, Ondo state's commissioner for health, said the cases had been reported in the Odigbo and Irele local government areas. A total of 182 people are believed to have been affected and some are being treated in the hospital, he said.
“I took like two shots and I went out on Friday. On Saturday, I noticed that I could not see,” 32-year-old Sola Adebayo told the local TVC News channel from a hospital bed.
Drinking locally made alcohol is common in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, especially in rural areas where it is more affordable and poorly regulated.
“This thing happened rapidly. Once they consume, depending on the quantity, the kidneys will pack up, the eyes will go, the brain will be damaged,” Ajaka told The Associated Press, speaking about the drink.
Ondo state police spokesman Abayomi Jimoh said in a statement that 15 people were arrested in connection with the incident, including one allegedly “involved in the production of substances suspected to contain methanol and is currently assisting the police with investigations.”
Locals told the AP they suspected a popular herbal drink with high alcohol content, known as “Monkey Tail,” was mixed with methanol, causing the deaths.
A trader who sells the concoction in Odigbo, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of being arrested, told the AP there are two versions of Monkey Tail: an original, safe version, and another version which is unsafe.
Local media reports said the first death was reported nearly two weeks ago.
Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control is currently enforcing a nationwide ban on alcohol in sachets and small plastic containers, which it said are easily accessible to children and young people.
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