Gardai suspect a couple in their 60s may have fallen victim to methanol poisoning after consuming illicit or homemade alcohol at their Midleton home. A man in his early 60s tragically died, while his partner was urgently taken to a Cork city hospital.
After the alarm was raised, Gardai and the National Ambulance Service rushed to the terraced house at Broomfield West just after 4pm yesterday afternoon. They discovered a man in his 60s who sadly didn't respond to revival attempts, CorkBeo reports.
A seriously ill woman was also found and immediately rushed to CUH, where she remains in critical condition. Neighbours expressed their shock as Gardai sealed off the small terraced home for technical examination following the sudden tragedy that struck the usually peaceful estate.
It's believed Gardai discovered bottles in the house that seemed to contain homemade spirits. The couple may have consumed tainted alcohol and succumbed to poisoning, possibly from lethal methanol, which has been linked to an increasing number of poisoning deaths, including a recent case involving six tourists in Laos who were served illegally produced spirits.
Similar incidents have occurred in Cork in recent years. In 2019, Gardai raided a northside city apartment and busted an illegal alcohol selling operation estimated to be worth €400,000 annually.
This super-strength alcohol, known as 'Russian poteen', was being sold on the streets for around €13 a bottle.
There have been isolated incidents of this 'Russian poteen' being peddled on the streets of Cork city, typically diluted with orange juice and transported in plastic fizzy drink bottles. The outcome of a post-mortem is expected later today, but it's believed that Gardai are not suspecting any foul play in this instance.
It's understood that the couple's family back in Poland have been notified about the tragic incident.
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