Toxic alcohol kills 21 people in Pakistan's Faisalabad

At least 21 people were killed and over a dozen others fell unconscious after drinking poisonous alcohol in Pakistan's industrial city of Faisalabad, local media reported on Saturday. According to the reports, several people fell unconscious on Friday after consuming poisonous liquor in different areas of Faisalabad, a city in Pakistan's eastern province of Punjab. The first incident took place in the Warispura area of Faisalabad where at least 17 people were killed and over a dozen other fell unconscious after drinking toxic liquor at a party. Four people were affected in the area of Batala Colony, and they died in hospital during their treatment. In an attempt to hide the incident from police, the relatives of the victims first took them to the private hospitals and when their situation deteriorated they were shifted to the government- run Allied Hospital. The affected people were kept in intensive care units of the hospital but they could not survive. According to hospital officials, more than 10 people are still under treatment at the hospital. City Police Chief Abdul Razzaq Cheema said that two different incidents of consuming toxic liquor occurred in the city that killed 21 people, adding that an investigation was launched to probe the incidents. Police also registered a case against the brewers and suppliers but could not arrest any of the accused. Every year, dozens of people lose their lives in Pakistan due to homemade alcohol tainted with methanol.