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Heath officials act after deaths of five tourists
Thailand health officials have moved to protect tourists after five foreigners died mysteriously in the northern city of Chiang Mai earlier this year.
Authorities say the five – including two Britons and a New Zealander – were likely poisoned by unidentified toxic chemicals or pesticides.
They died in the Downtown Inn in Chiang Mai – Thailand’s second biggest city – between January 11 and February 19.
At the time, the hotel claimed the deaths were “just a coincidenceâ€.
Thailand’s Department of Disease Control said actions that will be taken in Chiang Mai and other Thai tourists destinations would include close monitoring of the use of chemicals and pesticides in hotels, inspections of markets and street food vendors, health and safety training by local authorities, and a review of investigation procedures.
A five-month investigation led by the Thai authorities with cooperation from the World Health Organisation and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention was largely inconclusive but found no evidence of criminal cause.
Three cases were attributed to exposure to chemicals, pesticides or gas, while for two victims – an elderly British couple – there was no known cause.
Ian Jarrett
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