Four dead in Laos mass methanol poisoning

Four foreign tourists have died after a suspected mass methanol poisoning from drinking tainted alcohol at a backpacker hotspot in Laos.

A young Australian woman was the latest confirmed death, and her friend was fighting for her life, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.

Two Danish citizens and an American had also died, officials said, after what media said was a night out in Vang Vieng where they drank possibly tainted alcohol.

The group of about a dozen tourists became ill after going out on November 12.

"Tragically, Bianca Jones has lost her life. Our first thoughts at this moment are with her family and friends who are grieving a terrible and cruel loss,"  the Australian Prime Minister told parliament.

"We also take this moment to say that we are thinking of Bianca's friend Holly Bowles who is fighting for her life," he said, without giving further details.

Holly was on "life support" in a hospital in Bangkok, her father Shaun Bowles told Australia's Nine News on Wednesday.

Bowles and Jones, both aged 19 from Melbourne, became unwell while staying at the Nana Backpackers Hostel in Vang Vieng last week, Australian media reported.

The women drank at the hostel's bar before they went out for the evening, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported.

They failed to check out on November 13, when hostel staff rushed the pair to the hospital.

The Facebook and Instagram pages of the hostel had been deactivated as of Thursday and it was no longer taking bookings on booking websites.

UK media reported one British woman was also in hospital in Bangkok after drinking in Vang Vieng.

Denmark's foreign ministry said in a statement Wednesday that two Danish citizens had died in Laos, without providing further information.

The US State Department also confirmed the  "death of a US citizen in Vang Vieng, Laos," and said it was "closely monitoring the situation and providing consular assistance."

New Zealand's embassy in Bangkok said it had been contacted by one of its citizens "who was unwell and may be a victim of methanol poisoning in Laos".