A lawyer from Orpington has died after she was served drinks that allegedly contained methanol while on holiday in Laos.

Simone White, 28, a previous A-Level student from St Olave’s Grammar School in Orpington, is the fifth tourist to have died after falling ill last week, according to several reports.

At least seven others, including other British holidaymakers, were also hospitalised, as reported by the Times.

An Australian teenager, two Danish women in their twenties and an American are also those reported to have died after the incident in Vang Vieng.

Bianca Jones, 19, from Melbourne, died on Thursday at a hospital in Udon Thani, near Thailand’s border with Laos.

Her schoolfriend Holly Bowles, also 19, remains ill on life support.

Many of the victims, mostly guests at Nana Backpacker Hostel, fell ill after drinking on Tuesday night.

It is not known where the contaminated drinks were sold.

Simone's friend, Bethany Clarke, a healthcare worker also from Orpington, took to the Laos Backpacking Facebook group to warn other travellers.

She said: “Urgent — please avoid all local spirits.

“Our group stayed in Vang Vieng and we drank free shots offered by one of the bars. Just avoid them as so not worth it.

“Six of us who drank from the same place are in hospital currently with methanol poisoning.”

The Nana Backpackers Hostel manager told the Associated Press that more than 100 guests received free shots of Lao vodka from their bar on November 12, with no one else reporting health issues.