Seven tourists taken to hospital in Fiji after drinking cocktails at resort bar | World news

Seven foreign tourists have been taken to hospital after drinking cocktails at a five-star resort in Fiji, authorities said.

Australians are among the tourists who fell ill after drinking at the Warwick Fiji resort on the south coast of Viti Levu island on Saturday, Fiji’s government said in a statement.

Local media indicate that an American tourist is also among those taken to hospital.

The group was treated for nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms, said Jemesa Tudravu, a spokesman for the Fijian Ministry of Health.

Two people remain in hospital and are conscious and in a stable condition, Fiji Tourism Minister Viliame R Gavoka said.

Four others were discharged on Monday and one on Sunday.

The cause of their illness is not known, and officials have said it is too early to know if contaminated alcohol was involved.

Mr. Gavoka said no other reports of similar illness have been recorded at the resort or across Fiji.

“The resort management has assured us that they have not engaged in practices such as substituting ingredients or altering the quality of drinks served to guests,” he said.

South Pacific police are leading an investigation into the incident and have ordered toxicology tests and are awaiting the results.

That will come later six foreign tourists, including a British woman, died after consuming contaminated alcohol in Laos last month.

The Fijian government said in a statement that this is an “extremely isolated incident affecting only these seven guests at a specific bar at the resort”.

It continued: “While we understand the concern, we would like to emphasize that the tourism experience in Fiji is typically very safe and we have taken immediate action to try to find the cause of what caused these guests at this resort to become ill.”

Mereisi Makutu, front office manager at the resort, told Fiji’s state broadcaster it was also investigating the incident.

“Our main priority at the moment is looking after the guests who are currently in hospital,” she told the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation.

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David Sandoe, an Australian who said his daughter and granddaughter were hospitalized, told Sky News Australia on Monday that his relatives had been cleared for discharge from hospital.

Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers told a press conference that consular officials were assisting those affected along with their families.

“Our thoughts are with the friends and family of the people affected. This is undoubtedly a very distressing time for them,” he said.

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