RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Fighting a large-scale pandemic of a virus that is yet to have a cure announced, many countries are also fighting widespread misinformation.
In the Dominican Republic, 109 people died of poisoning after ingesting Clerén, a homemade alcoholic beverage whose properties were said to help fight the novel coronavirus infection.
With thousands of cases already confirmed, hundreds of people may have ingested this homemade beverage, which is said to have been contaminated with methanol, a highly toxic liquid.
Thus, of the 130 people intoxicated, 109 eventually died due to the tampering of the drink, prompting an alert from the local government.
Caution‼️ Alcohol affects your immune system and decreases the body’s ability to fight infection.
Avoid ingesting homemade alcoholic beverages without the proper health authorization. Consumption endangers your health and even your life. pic.twitter.com/0FmV2gvoAj
– Public Health DR (@SaludPublicaRD) April 23rd, 2020