Uganda, April 24: Eighty people have died in southwestern Uganda over the past month after drinking locally made gin containing high levels of methanol.
“I can confirm the number of deaths is now at 80 and the cause is this local waragi,” said Patrick Tusiim, health officer for the Kabale district.
Waragi is the local name for home-brewed alcohol made variously from cassava, bananas, millet or cane sugar, depending on the region.
The drink that caused the deaths was a home-made gin popular in Uganda which contained high levels of methanol, a substance used in industry as a solvent or antifreeze, the officer said.
“Leaders in the district have tried to communicate the dangers of taking these drinks, but for some reason, the message has not gotten through to the population,” Wilfred Niwagaba, member of parliament for Kabale, said.
Police this week confiscated hundreds of litres of home-brewed alcohol in a district on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.
—Agencies