The parents of two Australian teenagers, who tragically lost their lives during a backpacking trip, are asking tourists to stay away from one particular “corrupt” country.
Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones, both 19, were “having an absolute blast” in Asia last year. But their thrill-seeking adventure took a turn when they lost their lives with four other tourists.
In light of the anniversary of their daughters’ passing, their parents said they hope travelers would “remove this country from their bucket list.”
Australian teenagers Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones tragically lost their lives during a backpacking trip
Image credits: Holly Bowles
Best friends Holly and Bianca were having an “unbelievable time” backpacking through Thailand and Laos last year.
They were staying at the Nana Backpackers Hostel in the tourist town of Vang Vieng, Laos, when tragedy struck.
Image credits: Bianca Jones
The teenage tourists suffered methanol poisoning after a batch of drinks was allegedly laced with the colorless, odorless substance, which can cause serious illness as well as lead to fatalities.
The toxic substance is commonly added to bootleg alcohol, but even just 0.85 fluid ounces can be dangerous.
The teenagers drank free shots at their backpackers’ hostel before heading for a night out
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
Reports said the teens drank free shots from the Nana Backpacker Hostel and then headed out for the night on November 12, 2024.
Holly and Bianca became unwell after allegedly consuming the methanol-laced drinks and were rushed to a hospital in neighboring Thailand. They both lost their lives days later, alongside four other tourists who also suffered methanol poisoning.
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
Eight people were detained last year in connection with the alleged methanol poisoning incident. However, the government in Laos refused assistance from the Australian Federal Police to investigate the passing.
Nearly a year has passed, but parents Shaun and Samantha are still fighting for justice over losing of their “kind, loving, funny” daughter, Holly.
“We recognize how corrupt and unhelpful the Laos Government [is], there is no evidence whatsoever to suggest there is any type of investigation going on,” the parents told the Herald Sun.
Parents of the girls urged tourists to “remove this country from their bucket list”
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
“[Our] hope is that Australians remove this country from their bucket list, your life is worth nothing over there, and we have seen this first-hand as well as other families that have been involved in this tragedy,” they added.
Parents Mark and Michelle Jones also spoke about the passing of their daughter Bianca, who had “so much ahead of her.”
Image credits: 9News Australia
“Our daughters’ k**lers remain free, facing no consequences,” they said.
“With little to no information coming from the Laotian authorities to the families or their governments, it appears these d**ths of innocent young women may be forgotten, brushed aside and left unresolved,” they said.
“We must have justice,” they added. “At the very least, they deserve that.”
“Our daughters’ k**lers remain free, facing no consequences,” the parents said
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
Last year, Shaun spoke about how his daughter was on a trip of a lifetime with her best friend when the tragedy struck.
“They were having an unbelievable time. Having so much fun and doing what two 19-year-old girls should be doing,” the father said.
“They were just having an absolute blast,” he added.
Image credits: Holly Bowles
The father said he and Bianca’s father, Mark, also took a similar trip about two and a half decades back.
He also said his daughter would talk to his wife “every third day” if not every day of the trip.
“They were doing what hundreds of thousands of other travelers have done,” he said
Four other tourists also lost their lives alongside the 19-year-old Australian teens
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
On the day they received the call about the methanol poisoning, the two mothers of the teenage girls got on a plane the same night, and the fathers followed them the very next day.
He said they initially couldn’t figure out what was going on because they were “getting second-hand information.”
Only after they started getting blood test results did they understand it was a case of methanol poisoning.
Image credits: 60 Minutes Australia
“When you hear your daughter is not going to pull through, I think disbelief is the only word to describe what was happening to us,” said the bereaved father.
The four other tourists who lost their lives in the drink-spiking incident were two Danish women, Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman, 20, and Frela Vennervald Sorensen, 21, a UK citizen, Simon White, 28, and one American, James Louis Huston, 57.
“All travellers should be made aware of this activity,” one commented online
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