Ecuador’s health authorities have raised to 20 the number of deaths and 57 the number of cases under study following intoxication after drinking adulterated alcohol sold without control or registration in the provinces of Esmeraldas and Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas.
The Ministry of Health reported nine deaths in Esmeraldas, in the north of the country, as well as eleven deaths in the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, 100 km west of Quito, the capital.
The deceased are mostly men between the ages of 25 and 84, the ministry said in a posting on its official Twitter social network profile. «We maintain surveillance, monitoring and control of cases,» the agency added.
Along with the deceased, Ecuadorian authorities have treated 57 people for poisoning, 16 of them in medical centers in Esmeraldas and 39 others in the province of Santo Domingo, the health ministry said in a statement.
«This portfolio of State makes a call of co-responsibility to the citizenship to avoid the consumption of alcohol of dubious origin that does not have the necessary permits. Methyl alcohol is a toxic substance that can cause serious consequences, even death,» the agency recalled.
The Ministry has also pointed out the key symptoms of intoxication: blurred vision, nausea, dizziness or abdominal pain. «In the case of evidencing related symptoms it is important to go to the nearest health center,» he warned.
