Sisters' deaths in Thailand not from DEET, Quebec coroner says
Family still awaiting full results from Canadian autopsies
CBC News
Posted: Oct 10, 2012 7:13 PM ET
A Quebec coroner is challenging the autopsy findings of Thai officials that ruled two Quebec sisters found dead in their hotel room in June were accidentally poisoned.
Coroner Renée Roussel told Radio-Canada the concentration of the chemical DEET in the sisters' systems wasn't enough to be fatal.
That contradicts the conclusion of Thai authorities, who performed post-mortems on the bodies of Noémi Bélanger, 25, and Audrey Bélanger, 20, shortly after the sisters were found on June 15 by hotel staff.
A pathologist determined the women likely ingested DEET, a principal ingredient in bug repellant, in a euphoria-inducing cocktail that is popular among youth in Thailand.
The sisters from Pohénégamook, Que., had just arrived on Thailand's Phi Phi Island and were last seen partying with two Brazilian friends in the early morning of June 13.
Investigators said there were no signs of foul play in their hotel room, but there was evidence that the women may have suffered some kind of toxic reaction.
DEET levels not fatal
Dr. René Blais of Quebec's poison control centre said the DEET concentration reported by the Thai pathologist doesn't correspond to a concentration that would be toxic, "let alone a concentration that would be fatal."
It's still unclear what caused their deaths if it wasn't DEET poisoning.
Secondary autopsies were conducted in Montreal, but the results haven't been released.
Thai investigators haven't closed the case. They submitted their investigation report to the Canadian Embassy in Thailand without making the findings public.
Other mysterious deaths
In the last three years, a dozen vacationers have died under suspicious circumstances in tourist areas of Thailand and Vietnam.
In 2009, two young tourists, one from the United States and the other from Norway, who were staying at a guest house near the hotel where the Bélanger sisters were found, also died under mysterious circumstances.
Their deaths remain unsolved, but there was speculation the women had been poisoned.
Sisters' deaths in Thailand not from DEET, Quebec coroner says - Montreal - CBC News
Thought the Thai DEET finding was a little too neat. It did it's job moving the story from page 1 to page 10.
We could all sit outside on banana lounges discussing the best way to rebuild a 4WD transmission and agree, through shared stories of conquests supporting our assertions, that there is no basis to the proposition that those least assured of their persuasions are the first to condemn others for theirs.
Well they haven't formally closed the case, but they've basically 'decided' it was DEET and self-induced. Phew, no Thais to blame.Originally Posted by cluezo
According the BKK post last week, they have. There was a small article to say that the case was closed and that the conclusion was that of unknown death, or something equally as funny.
I was going to take the paper so I could copy the article, but ABP get funny about me taking even their free BKK magazines, let alone something they have paid for.
You can't get a freebie if you're a farang. Goes against all the principles..
Why should I trust a coroner from Quebec? They are dumb as fuck.
Well, that succinct analysis pretty much puts this issue to rest.
I still think the Thai authorities may be correct.
Quebec coroners may be correct in stating that the level of DEET was not toxic, and certainly not fatal
But, mix the alcohol in.....
Mention that it is the fact that everyone has a different biochemistry and the two sisters may have shared a weakness that was family related and you have.......
nothing.
Back to square one. We may never know.
---Update---
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”
―
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
Two girls decide to party in a foreign country, act irresponsible and they are portrayed as angels in media using every opportunity to shit on Thailand.
How about this? My uncle had a stroke, went to a hospital in Montreal and was treated like dirt because he spoke English. "Incidentally" he was poisoned while staying in the hospital due to mold and bacteria in his private room that he paid through the nose. I know... I'm making this up.
It's a fact that hospitals are one of the worst places in terms of picking up germs.
That's a medical fact though, and lots of good reasons to explain it.
---Update---
That's unfortunate and would have cost Thailand many tourists from Quebec/Canada in particular.
I wonder if they ingested mushrooms?
Those I hear can be seriously deadly.
I've heard/experienced the exact opposite. Unless you aren't very well versed in the art of picking, there's no real physical harm (unless you ate so much that your stomach ruptured, same with french fries or banana smoothies)...
Russ, do you make this stuff up in the hope that you will be believed or are you actually so filled with erroneous trivia?
...quite a euphemism...
...majestically enthroned amid the vulgar herd...
I've ingested mushrooms all my life, and I'm seriously alive. Seriously!
"Thailand is way past the days of tuna, pineapples, and bargirls." - Sharky
...tell that to Nat...
Apparently psyllicybon (sp) mushroom do grow in the area.
But are confused with a similar looking mushroom which is, regretably, quite toxic.
Throw in some meth and alcohol and bingo.
Dirty drugs would be my guess.
Posting Permissions
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Bookmarks