A coroner investigating the death of teenager last year concluded that she died of drowning and possible hypothermia after drinking excessive amounts of a sweet, high-alcohol drink. Athena Gervais, 14, was found dead in a stream behind her school in Laval, north of Montreal on March 1, 2018.
She went missing for three days after drinking most of three, half-litre cans of a beverage called FCKD UP that she was sharing with friends. This was the equivalent of 12 glasses of wine that were drunk in half an hour.
These sugary, high-alcohol beverage were cheap and available in a corner store near Athena Gervais’ school. (Charles Contant/CBC)
‘Prevent the dangers of excessive alcohol,’ recommends coroner
“In my opinion, Athéna Gervais found herself disoriented and accidentally fell into a creek. Her cognitive state was so disrupted because of her drinking that she died,” said Coroner Martin Larocque in releasing his report.
“We must take away from the death of Athéna Gervais that it’s imperative that a set of measures be adopted to prevent the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption, both with minor children and young adults.”
These kinds of drinks are popular with teenagers who want to drink alcohol. They come in colourful cans and are easily purchased in convenience stores.
Coroner calls for plain packaging
The coroner recommended that companies be obliged to put them in plain packaging in the same way that cigarettes in Canada must be sold in plain wrappers.
There are currently rules that limit how these drinks are advertised on radio and television, but Larocque said limits should be extended to social media and the internet.
At the time of her death, friends asked that the drinks be banned, or at least be sold in liquor stores which are more strict about enforcing the law forbidding the sale of alcohol to those under 18 years old. There were also reports of an increase in the number teenagers being brought to hospital after consuming these high-alcohol products.
These drinks are not candy, says dad
Athena’s father, Alain Gervais, told CBC it is still far too easy for young people to get these drinks at corner stores and the advertising is too strong. He added the attractive colours make it seem like they’re candy. “They’re not candy. They’re dangerous.”
With files from CBC and The Canadian Press.
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