An Australian woman is ‘sitting up and chatty’ after a suspected case of poisoning from a cocktail served at a five-star resort in Fiji.
The 56-year-old was one of seven people who experienced nausea, vomiting, and neurological symptoms after consuming a cocktail, believed to be a pina colada, at the luxurious Warwick Resort.
She was first taken to Lautoka Hospital in a critical condition with one other Australian.
She remains in intensive care but is reportedly doing better today, with 9News confirming that she is “sitting up in her hospital bed” and has been “chatty” this morning.
She is surrounded by her family members, 9News also reports.
The woman said she only drank a small amount of the cocktail before she was urged to go to hospital on Saturday night.
In a full statement released today, the resort said it was “deeply concerned” by the reports of alcohol poisoning.
“As a business that has proudly traded in Fiji for almost 40 years, this is an unprecedented event for us,” a spokesperson for Warwick Fiji said.
“We take the safety of our guests very seriously.
“We are currently working jointly with the authorities to determine what caused this unfortunate incident.
“We are committed to ensuring a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone who visits our resort.”
Tourism officials in Fiji say this is an isolated incident and have questioned tourism warnings about not drinking alcohol on the island.
“We’ve never had anything like this in our history here in Fiji… we’re trying to get to the bottom of it,” Tourism Fiji Chief Executive Brent Hill said.
“It could actually be even food poisoning or something similar to that.
“We’re trying to really determine that within the next 24 to 48 hours.”
The Fijian government are awaiting toxicology test results today to determine if the cocktails were poisoned or not.
Meanwhile, two Australians also believed to have suffered alcohol poisoning returned home to relieved family members in Sydney last night.
The luxury hotel at the centre of the suspected alcohol poisoning incident previously told 9news.com.au they were taking the matter “very seriously.”
It also said it has checked its CCTV and it’s believed samples of the drink’s ingredients have been sent to Australia for analysis.
