Seven tourists hospitalised in Fiji from suspected alcohol poisoning

WELLINGTON - Seven tourists including four Australians were hospitalised in a suspected case of alcohol poisoning at a resort in Fiji, the Australian and Fijian governments said on Monday.

The tourists became ill after drinking a cocktail at the Warwick Fiji resort on the south coast of Viti Levu island, Fiji's government said in a statement.

"This is an extremely isolated incident, affecting only these seven guests at a specific bar within the resort," the Fiji government said.

Last month six foreign tourists died after consuming contaminated alcohol in Laos.

Management at the resort said it had not substituted ingredients or altered the quality of drinks served to guests, the statement said.

"While we understand the concern, we want to emphasise that the tourism experience in Fiji is typically very safe, and we have acted immediately to try and discover the cause of what made these guests, at this resort, fall ill," Fiji's government said.

Mereisi Makutu, the front office manager at the resort, told Fiji's state broadcaster it was investigating the incident.

"Our main priority at the moment is to look after those guests that are in hospital at the moment," she told the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation in an interview.

Australia Treasurer Jim Chalmers told a news conference consular officials were helping those impacted along with their families, while Fiji's police were leading an investigation into the poisoning.

"We are thinking of the friends and family of the people who are affected. This is no doubt a very distressing time for them," he said.

The Australian government has updated its travel advice for Fiji to flag dangers of drink spiking, and warned Australians more generally about the risk of alcohol poisoning when travelling.

"If Australians are travelling, be very alert to the potential risks in this case around drink spiking and alcohol poisoning," Chalmers said.

(Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Wellington; Editing by Michael Perry)