A Health Secretariat inspector in Barranquilla checks a bottle following the death of 11 people after they drank a homemade liquor. Photo / AFP
A Health Secretariat inspector in Barranquilla checks a bottle following the death of 11 people after they drank a homemade liquor. Photo / AFP
Eleven people have died and 10 others are in a critical condition after consuming drinks from a dangerous batch of homemade liquor in the Colombian city of Barranquilla, officials reported Friday.
Most of the dead were unhoused street dwellers who consume “cochoco”, a cocktail of ethyl alcohol, methanol and othersubstances that is sold in reused plastic bottles for about US50c (87c).
Ever Carabello, the nephew of one of the deceased, told AFP his uncle consumed it “every day”, adding, “honestly, we never thought this would happen to him”.
The drink’s maker is among those who died and police said the liquor was produced in “deplorable”, unsanitary conditions.
In Colombia, cheap homemade liquor is commonly consumed by those living in extreme poverty.
