Poisoned Brit's mum shares heartbreak of Laos vigil

The mother of a British lawyer who died after allegedly being served drinks laced with methanol in Laos has revealed the "horrendous" 16-hour journey she made to be at her bedside. Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, and Australians Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, both 19, were among six foreign tourists who died from the suspected methanol poisoning event in Laos. The women were taken to hospital after the incident in the popular backpacking town of Vang Vieng. White was taken in for surgery just as her mother, Sue White, 61, arrived at the hospital. It later became clear that her brain function was gone, and she died on November 21. "The flight from the UK was horrendous," her mother told The Sunday Times. "Before I left, I got a call from the hospital to say she needed urgent brain surgery and I had to give my consent. "It was a terrible, terrible journey." On the night she was poisoned, White and her friends drank six vodka shots served by the hostel, the newspaper reported. Their condition worsened, and they decided to go to hospital. Police in Laos have detained several people in connection with the deaths. White was a lawyer with global law firm Squire Patton Boggs, whose work involved general commercial matters, and contentious and non-contentious intellectual property law issues, according to the firm's website. Issuing a warning to travellers, her mother said: "Please be careful when it comes to drinks." She said her daughter was "a university-educated, highly intelligent person". "If it can happen to her, it can happen to anybody," she said. Landlocked Laos is one of Southeast Asia's poorest nations and a popular tourist destination. Vang Vieng is particularly popular among backpackers seeking partying and adventure sports. Officials in Laos have released almost no details about the case, with the government keeping a tight lid on information. The country is a one-party communist state with no organised opposition.