The man saw the kaleidoscopic light before the blind

When Kalum McDonald arrived at the Vietnamese border, he could not read the administrative forms in front of him. Everything he saw is a “kaleidoscopic blinding light.”

He just got out of the night bus with his friends from the popular Wang Vieng tourist point in Laos.

The day before, the group spent free whiskey and vodka in the dormitory. Kalum mixed them with non -alcoholic beverages.

And only on the border did he suspect that something could be wrong with his vision – what he told his friends about.

“I remember that in my eyes there was such a kaleidoscopic, dazzling light and to the fact that I saw nothing.

“(We agreed) it was strange, but we thought it was food poisoning, and the light I saw was some kind of sensitivity,” he says BBC breakfast.

But when they arrived at the destination in Vietnam, it was clear that something was seriously wrong.

“We were sitting in a hotel room, my friends and I told them,” Why are we sitting in the dark? Someone should turn on the light. ” The light was already.

23 -year -old Kalum is now blind and tells its story for the first time. He was one of several victims Mass Methanol poisoning in Vang Vieng Last November.

Six people were killed. Kalum knew that two of them were Danish girls he met at night.

Everyone remained in the Nana Backpacker city hostel.

Kalum now works with the families of three other British people who died after methanol poisoning in Southeast Asia.

They call for a foreign office to be clearer about the danger that people face when they book holidays in countries where methanol poisoning is anxious.

Simon White was one of such people.

The day after Kalum left Vang Vieng, Simon drank free hostel shots. Earlier, she sent her mother a text message stating that it was the best holiday on which she was.

In the following days, Simon was admitted to the hospital, and a friend called Sue’s mother to tell her what happened. She later called again to say that Simon was in a coma.

Sue immediately booked a flight, but before she was able to fly, she received another call to the night of the doctor in Laos, who treated Simon.

“(He said) you need to give permission to surgery on the brain, otherwise it is not going to survive …

“I flew the next day, knowing that she was experiencing surgery, and, frankly, the worst, frankly.”

28-year-old guy died at the hospital from methanol poisoning.

“It is very difficult to reconcile with what happened,” Sue says. “Nothing will return Simon back.”

Methanol is a type of alcohol, which is commonly found in cleansers, fuel and antifreeze. It looks like ethanol used for alcoholic beverages but more toxic to a person with -wit The way to treat it with the body.

Alcoholic beverages can become infected with methanol if they are poorly produced.

This is a well -known problem with cheap spirits in Southeast Asia, where hundreds of people are poisoned annually, charity doctors reports (MSF) reports.

If you consume one of these contaminated drinks and suffers from methanol poisoning, the symptoms may include dizziness, fatigue, headaches and nausea.

For many people, it looks like a regular hangover that makes it difficult or you were poisoned or just drank too much drink.

After 12-48 hours, more serious problems can arise like attacks and blurred vision. In severe cases, this can lead to complete blindness and leave the martyrs in a coma.

Just 30 ml of methanol can be lethal for humans, MSF said.

When diagnosed with 10-30 hours after consumption, methanol poisoning can be successfully treated with dialysis.

The 38 -year -old Makki died in 2022, but it was not the result of free shots.

She enjoyed drinking at home with a friend on the eve of Bali – on Indonesia, where she lived and worked for eight years.

Her girlfriend Sonya Taylor said they both felt that they had a particularly bad hangover the next day before Kiri was taken to the hospital for treatment.

Sonya also drank contaminated alcohol, but survived.

“We had no idea,” says Sonia. “It was perhaps the most difficult for me, not knowing why you live and someone else dies … It seems that it has no rhymes and reasons.”

On Sumatra, another Indonesian Island, Cheznye Emmons died after a drinking gina Later, it was found that 66,000 times the legal border for methanol in drinks.

The mother of Pamela’s mother tells the BBC: “I think the worst thing about it … (it was) before she started to approach when she first arrived at the hospital, she said to her guy,” I’m really afraid. ”

“And mostly it was the last time (she said).”

Calum’s advice to tourists – avoid free drinks and spirits as a whole. “There are many wonderful beer in Southeast Asia, which is sure to like people.”

He says the study of the death of the two Danish girls he met with Vang Viana changed his view of his blindness.

“Part of the way I (I) dealt with it was to bury my head in the sand … I really felt that my life was not worth living.”

Now Kalum learns to use the reed and hopes to apply for a dog soon.

He adds: “(Death) made me understand that I was very lucky, and I felt grateful that although I had some difficult consequences, many people were even worse.

“I felt that considering me to survive, I was responsible to try to prevent the same with others.”

The foreign service describes the methanol poisoning and the fake alcohol as a “serious problem in some parts of the world” and stated that it works with local authorities and travel to solve the problem.

‘We strive to make understand the risks for British who travel abroad and raise awareness through our travel tips and Company Infuit Traveling“