At least 48 dead in Nigeria after drinking locally made liquor suspected to contain methanol

At least 48 people have died and more than 100 are receiving treatment after drinking locally made liquor suspected to contain methanol in Ondo State, southern Nigeria, over the past two weeks.

According to the Associated Press, residents in the Odigbo and Irele areas of Ondo State began falling ill after consuming the locally brewed drink Thursday (local time).

State health authorities estimate that at least 48 people have died and a total of 182 have been affected.

One victim, Sola Adebayo, 32, told local media that he had about two drinks on a Friday before going out, then lost consciousness. "By Saturday, I realized I could not see," he said.

Local residents suspect that Monkey Tail, a locally made herbal liquor, may have been adulterated with methanol.

Monkey Tail is made by mixing ogogoro — a potent spirit distilled from raffia palm sap — with plant roots, cannabis and other ingredients.

Banji Ajaka, Ondo State's health commissioner, warned that the drink "can cause kidney failure, blindness and brain damage depending on the amount consumed."

Homemade liquor is relatively common in rural parts of Nigeria, where prices are low and oversight of retail and manufacturing is weak.

Ondo State police said 15 people have been arrested in connection with the incident, including one person facing charges of producing a substance suspected to contain methanol.

Meanwhile, Nigeria's health authorities have imposed a nationwide ban on the sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in small plastic sachets or plastic containers as a safety measure.