2012 Czech Republic methanol poisonings

The 2012 Czech Republic methanol poisonings occurred in September 2012 in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia, when contaminated liquor killed 38 people in the Czech Republic and four in Poland within days and hospitalised many more. Poisonings continued for several years, and by April 2014 fifty one people had died and many others had suffered permanent health damage. The Czech government set up a central emergency response council and banned sales of spirits above 30 percent alcohol at food stands on 12 September, extended the ban to all alcoholic drinks above 20 percent on 14 September and banned their export on 20 September, lifting the restrictions a week later. A special police team named Metyl traced the source of the contaminated alcohol, and in May 2014 the two main suspects were sentenced to life imprisonment, with eight others imprisoned for between 8 and 21 years. Methanol has been banned in the European Union for windscreen washing or defrosting since May 2018. A comparable incident killed 68 people in Parnu county, Estonia, in 2001.