The father of 19-year-old Holly Bowles, who died from suspected methanol poisoning in Laos last month, said his daughter was ‘full of life’ and ‘everything you would want your daughter to be’ as he appealed for those responsible to be held to account.
Shaun Bowles said in a tearful interview with the BBC that his daughter was travelling across South East Asia with her friend, Bianca Jones, also 19, when they fell ill after drinking alcohol thought to have been contaminated.
They were among six tourists who died in the space of just a few days in the tourist hotspot, Vang Vieng, including Simone White, a 28-year-old lawyer from the UK, who drank at the same hostel before falling critically ill.
‘They were having an unbelievable time, just having so much fun,’ Mr Bowles told the BBC’s Today Programme. ‘They were just having an absolute blast.’
Mr Bowles said his daughter had been regularly in touch before they learned she had fallen unwell through a friend. Holly and Bianca’s mothers soon flew out to Thailand to visit them in the Udon Thani hospital where they had been moved.
Bianca tragically died on Thursday, November 21 and Holly a day later.
Mr Bowles told the BBC his focus was on raising awareness of the issue of methanol poisoning in South East Asia.
‘We absolutely want whoever is responsible for this brought to account and brought to justice, and we’re going to do everything that we can to make sure that is the case,’ he added.
Australian teenager Holly Bowles died after suffering alleged methanol poisoning in Laos
Melbourne teen Bianca Jones (pictured) died in hospital in Thailand in late November
Mr Bowles spoke to the BBC about his daughter and hopes to raise awareness of methanol poisoning in the wake of her tragic passing last month
The bereft father bravely spoke out as he calls for those responsible to be held accountable
Mr Bowles said that he and Bianca’s father, Mark, had also made a trip to Thailand some 25 years ago as friends.
He said their daughters were out in Laos to celebrate graduating from school.
They were taken to hospital after being found unresponsive, having failed to check out of the Nana Backpacker hotel.
Last week, Holly Bowles was finally sent off at the Beaumaris Secondary College in Australia, inviting friends and family to gather for an intimate service.
Mourners lined the street outside the school in a guard of honour as Ms Bowles made her final journey.
‘We would like to thank the people of Australia, Canada and the rest of the world for the outpouring of love, support and compassion during this extremely difficult time,’ Beaumaris Secondary College assistant principal Peter Bartlett said on behalf of Ms Bowles’ parents Shaun and Samantha, and brother James.
‘Your kindness has been a source of strength and comfort for our family. Today is a profoundly significant day for our family as we come together to celebrate Holly’s life.
‘Holly was loved and adored by so many people. Today is a reflection of her life however she will remain in our hearts forever.’
CCTV from inside the hostel shows Ms Bowles and Ms Jones being transported to a local clinic on the back of a motorbike being driven by a hotel staff worker
The three young women had been staying at Nana’s Backpackers Hostel in Vang Vieng
Tourists are pictured kayaking in the party town of Vang Vieng in Laos where six people died from alleged methanol poisoning
Simone White, 28, died in hospital after drinking alcohol suspected to have been laced with methanol in the backpacking hotspot Vang Vieng
The family reminded people a GoFundMe honouring both their daughter and Ms Jones was still operational.
The fundraiser, which aims to raise awareness about the dangers of methanol poisoning, had raised more than $413,000 of its half-a-million dollar target as Ms Bowles made her sad, final journey to her resting place.
Asking for privacy going forward, the family reiterated how difficult it had been dealing with the death of their beloved daughter.
‘This is the most difficult times of our our lives and we thank you for respecting our privacy,’ the statement ended.
Known for her love of music, the service for Ms Bowles included songs such as Mamma Mia, by Abba, and Chihiro, by Billie Eilish.
Ms Bowles was the sixth person to die after drinks were allegedly mixed with methanol and served to guests at the hostel.
Ms Jones and Ms Bowles did not leave their dorm at the Nana Backpacker Hostel 24 hours after going to Jaidee Bar and reported feeling unwell on November 13, before being rushed to hospitals in Bangkok.
CCTV from inside the hostel shows one of the women being transported to a local clinic on the back of a motorbike being driven by a hotel staff worker.
Holly Bowles (left) and Bianca Jones (right) both played for the Beaumaris Football Club
Thai authorities have confirmed Ms Jones died of ‘brain swelling due to high levels of methanol found in her system’.
Both girls’ bodies were flown back to Australia a week after their deaths.
Bianca Jones was farewelled at Mentone Girl’s Grammar in Melbourne’s south-east on Friday, December 6.
Hundreds of mourners gathered dressed in every colour of the rainbow in honour of the teenager.
Ms Jones’ family said they hoped to spend ‘the most important day’ of their lives farewelling and grieving their beautiful daughter.
‘Bianca was a private young woman, with a wonderful network, but she was not a celebrity,’ they said in a statement.
‘It is our wish Bianca be farewelled in a manner that reflects her life.’
Eight people have been detained in connection with the case.
Hostel manager and bartender Duong Duc Toan (pictured), has claimed it wasn’t his Tiger Vodka that made the tourists sick
A memorial card for the funeral of Holly Jayne Morton-Bowles held at at Beaumaris Secondary College in Melbourne
In a September video, the best friends were dancing happily together just weeks before their deadly backpacking trip
Hostel manager Duong Duc Toan and bartender Toan Van Vanng denied diluting their alcohol with methanol when questioned.
Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, also died after taking shots believed to have contained methanol at the hostel last month.
Sue White, mother to British victim, told The Sun how the hostel offered free whisky or vodka shots for two hours every night.
Toan said he bought the alcohol from a certified distributor and that free shots of Tiger Vodka had been served to around 100 guests.
He said he had yet to received any complaints from other backpackers who been given shots on the night.
He also drank from one of the vodka bottles that were in use on the night to prove it was safe.
Ms White said her ‘kind, fun-loving’ daughter and friends took ‘six shots’ each, watered down with Sprite, before falling ill and having ‘trouble breathing’.
She told The Sun how Simone and two friends took themselves to hospital the day after, but were ‘dismissed’ by medics, who told them they had food poisoning.
Simone and her friends took themselves to the hospital when they felt ill but were ‘dismissed’
By the time an ambulance arrived to take them on to a private facility, Simone was already ‘delirious’, her mother said, adding ‘I think, basically, it had already affected her brain’.
Ms White, a travel agent, said the family were ‘absolutely devastated’ by the news of their daughter’s tragic passing.
Her parents said together in an emotional tribute: ‘Simone was one of a kind and had the most wonderful energy and spark for life’.
‘She was a soul who gave so much to so many and was loved by her family, friends and colleagues’, they said.
‘Simone has been taken from us too soon, she will be sorely missed by her brother, grandmother and entire family.
‘Our hearts go out to all other families who have been affected by this terrible tragedy.’
The other three victims have been named as James Louis Hutson, a 57-year-old American, and Danish citizens Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman, 20, and Freja Vennervald Sorensen, 21.
