At least 23 people died after drinking adulterated alcohol at a funeral in Mexico’s central Puebla state, local officials said.

Puebla state official David Mendez said the tainted alcohol was consumed at a funeral which drew around 80 people in Chinconcuatla, around 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of Mexico City. “We have counted 23 dead so far. We are monitoring the situation,” Mendez told reporters.

The deaths occurred on Tuesday, after dozens of people were rushed to hospitals suffering headaches and vomiting. “Don’t drink alcohol...Identify adulterated drinks and find those responsible,” the city’s mayor Artemio Hernandez Garrido said in a Facebook message urging those with poisoning symptoms to seek immediate medical help.

Garrido vehemently denied a rumor that the deaths were due to the coronavirus pandemic. “The deaths are due to adulterated alcohol,” he said. In April, 21 people died in the western state of Jalisco after drinking adulterated alcohol. (AFP)