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Death toll rises to 90 in Kenyan moonshine liquor drama Nairobi

Freitag, 17. November 2000 / 13:37 Uhr

Nairobi - The death toll in the Kenyan capital from drinking illicit alcohol has risen to 90, and 380 people are hospitalised with serious symptoms of poisoning, a police spokesman said Friday.

Many people had gone blind and were in a critical condition, he said, adding that 12 women suspected of selling the brew laced with poisonous methanol had been detained.

The cheap mixture of beer and liquor known as Kumi Kumi had been introduced to slum dwellers by a group of dealers. The first victims of poisoning were found on Wednesday, and large numbers of them are being collected daily from huts and ditches.

"Although we have warned the public about the danger of the brew, they continue drinking it," said police spokesman Peter Kimanthi. Armed police officers raided a factory in Nairobi and seized samples of chemicals they believe were used in making the brew.

The firm produces methylated spirits and deals in acetone, methanol and rectified spirit whose by-products are used to make solvents and antifreeze, a report in The Daily Nation said. A man suspected of being involved in the manufacture of the brew was arrested.

The newspaper quoted the acting director of Kenyatta National Hospital as saying all doctors and nurses who were on leave had been recalled to cope with the crisis. He said the high number of people being admitted showed that people were still drinking the brew which doctors confirmed was based on methanol.

Brewing moonshine alcohol is common in Kenya despite a legal ban introduced in 1998. Media reports estimated that as many as 500 people have died during the past two years from drinking illicit alcohol.(la/dpa)