Hygiene officers conducted checks of 1,207 establishments – mostly
restaurants – at the weekend to see if they were upholding the partial
ban on hard liquor following the spate of methanol poisoning in the Czech
Republic in September that killed 27 people. Nine remain in hospital from
drinking poisoned alcohol; five of those persons were admitted to hospital
at the weekend. In all, 76 people were poisoned after consuming bootleg
liquor; some of those who survived suffered permanent disability, such as
blindness or badly-damaged eyesight.
Health Minister Leoš Heger confirmed on Monday that of the 1,207
establishments checked at the weekend, 20 venues had failed to meet the
strict new requirements, lacking, for example, the necessary documentation
for specific products sold. Under the partial ban, establishments have up
to 60 days to produce certification for alcohol in storage and only hard
alcohol produced before 2012 can be legally sold. In the near future,
hygiene officers will focus on taking samples from opened bottles at
establishments to measure for the presence of dangerous substances.