Costa Rica Roundup: Methanol poisoning, COVID-19 vaccines, cocaine seizure

Methanol poisoning

The Costa Rican Health Surveillance Directorate has reported that in the last five years, 139 Costa Ricans have died from methanol-adulterated alcoholic beverages. According to local media Teletica, the poisonings began in 2019 with 126 poisonings related to the consumption of colourless alcohol. The number of fatalities increased in 2021, but recovery rates remained low. There was an 88.2% decrease in number of cases in 2023.

Pediatric COVID-19 vaccines

Costa Rica has received a donation of 12,000 doses of pediatric COVID-19 vaccines from the United States, half for children aged six months to five years and the rest for minors aged five to 11, local media El Pais reported. According to El Pais, the vaccines will be available in healthcare centres of the Costa Rican Social Security Fund starting on February 12. Three weeks ago, Panama donated anti-COVID-19 vaccines to Costa Rica, with the majority intended for adult recipients over the age of 12 and a smaller portion designated for paediatric use. The Latin American nation has reported a rise in COVID-19 infections, hospitalisations, and deaths since December of last year; however, notifications from the prior week indicate a decline in SARS-Cov-2-related sickness., El Pais reports.

Seized cocaine in Guatemala

525 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed in a container that arrived at a port on the Pacific from Costa Rica were taken into custody by Guatemalan anti-drug officials, according to official sources on February 10.  The drugs were seized in a metal box container at a port 110 kilometres from Guatemala City, local media AM Prensa reports. The Guatemala authorities told reporters that the operation started in the afternoon on February 9 and that there was a possibility of a rise in narcotics seizures.

Cocoa excellence award

Costa Rica's Chocolatera del Volcán company won the gold award at the 2023 Cacao of Excellence Awards in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The award recognizes exceptional cocoa producers for their superior quality and diversity of flavours. A total of 222 cocoa bean samples from 52 different sources, including Africa and the Indian Ocean, Asia and the Pacific, Central America and the Caribbean, and South America, competed with the Costa Rican sample. Costa Rica took part in the awards ceremony for the Caribbean and Central America area, El Pais reports.

Taekwondo champions

The Costa Rican taekwondo team won gold and silver medals at the Canadian Open Taekwondo 2024 event. Young players Alejandro Román, Carlos Jiménez, and Fabián Carrillo won gold and silver medals while other members of the team placed in respectful positions at the competition. “There is no point in having teams if they do not compete internationally. The idea is to maintain the level of our athletes against the best in the world. We are going to the Canadian Open with nine taekwondo players where we hope that 2024 will be as successful as 2023 was,” Wilmar Alvarado, president of the Costa Rican Taekwondo Federation is quoted by local media La República.