480 die, 2,850 fall sick in Iran alcohol poisonings

The poisonings come as fake remedies for the new coronavirus spread across social media in Iran, where people remain deeply suspicious of the government after it downplayed the crisis for days before it overwhelmed the country. The message forwarded suggested a British school teacher and others cured themselves of the coronavirus with whiskey and honey, based on a tabloid story from early February.

Tehran: Around 480 people have been killed and 2,850 sickened so far by ingesting methanol (methyl alcohol) across the Islamic Republic of Iran, an Iranian doctor helping the country's health ministry told The Associated Press on Friday.

Drinking alcohol is banned in Iran and those who do rely on bootleggers.

The poisonings come as fake remedies for the new coronavirus spread across social media in Iran, where people remain deeply suspicious of the government after it downplayed the crisis for days before it overwhelmed the country.

"Other countries have only one problem, which is the new coronavirus pandemic. But we are fighting on two fronts here," said Dr. Hossein Hassanian, an adviser to Iran's health ministry who gave the higher figures to the AP.

"We have to both cure the people with alcohol poisoning and also fight the coronavirus," he said.

In messages forwarded and forwarded again, Iranian social media accounts in Farsi falsely suggested a British school teacher and others cured themselves of the coronavirus with whiskey and honey, based on a tabloid story from early February.

Mixed with messages about the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers, some wrongly believed drinking high-proof alcohol would kill the virus in their bodies.

The Islamic Republic has reported over 32,000 confirmed cases and more than 2,300 deaths from the virus, the highest toll of any country in the Middle East.

International experts also fear Iran may be under-reporting its cases, as officials for days played down the virus ahead of a parliamentary election.

That fear of the virus, coupled with poor education and internet rumors, saw dozens sickened by drinking bootleg alcohol containing methanol in Iran's southwestern Khuzestan province and its southern city of Shiraz.

Videos aired by Iranian media showed patients with IVs in their arms, laying on beds otherwise needed for the fight against the coronavirus, including an intubated 5-year-old boy. Iranian media also reported cases in the cities of Karaj and Yazd.

In two provinces, Hassanian said, the fake alcohols have killed more people than those who died by the coronavirus.

"They thought they were drinking ethyl alcohol, but what they actually drank was mostly methyl alcohol or the alcohol made from wood. This led to multi-organ failure, loss of vision and unfortunately the death of many people," he added.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.

(With inputs from AP)