Prague hospital admits another victim of methanol poisoning

Prague, Sept 16 (CTK) - The Prague General Teaching Hospital (VFN) admitted yesterday another man poisoned with methanol who allegedly drank whisky, VFN director Dana Juraskova has told CTK, adding that the patient may be administered the Fomepizol medicine the Czech Republic has received from Norway.

The 58-year-old man comes from Prague like the 30-year-old patient whom the VFN admitted in a critical condition on Friday. He received Fomepizol, his condition improved, but later it worsened again.

A 38-year-old man from Central Bohemia, who was also treated in the VFN, died on Monday.

These have been the sole three known cases from Bohemia. All other cases have been registered in Moravia, mainly in its northern part.

Twenty people have died of methanol poisoning, tens of others have been hospitalised and some of the survivors have gone blind.

A married couple, aged 74 and 70, was admitted in hospital in Opava, north Moravia, this morning.

Tests have confirmed poisoning with methanol, but they did not drink much, therefore they should not have any serious problems or permanent impairment of health, hospital spokesman Daniel Svoboda said.

The couple rather modified their statement that they drank vodka they bought in a market place in Poland some time ago.

"They confirmed they did buy the vodka bottle in a market place, but they are not sure whether it was in Czech, or Polish Tesin," Svoboda said.

The town is divided by the border into Czech Tesin and Polish Cieszyn.

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They said they drank vodka that they bought at a market place in Poland some time ago.

The Health Ministry introduced a nationwide ban on the sales and serving of drinks with more than 20 percent of alcohol in reaction to the situation.