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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
World
Rebecca Ratcliffe in Vang Vieng

In wake of Laos backpacker deaths, questions linger in Vang Vieng

Tourists paddle in boats along the Nam Song river in Vang Vieng
The Laos government has said it was ‘profoundly saddened’ by the deaths of foreign tourists in Vang Vieng in a suspected methanol poisoning. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

The music is still playing and the alcohol is still flowing at the bars along one of the party streets in Vang Vieng. Inside a popular venue, a voice over the speaker announces a special offer on beers, as disco lights flicker on the floor. Small paper flags from nations across the world – from Britain to Gabon – hang from the ceiling.

Young people travel from all corners of the globe to party in the small town nestled in the Laos countryside. But Vang Vieng is under a global spotlight, following a suspected mass methanol poisoning that killed six foreign tourists, including two teenagers from Australia, two Danish citizens, a Briton and an American.

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