Two Tennesee teenagers have died and two more have been hospitalized after drinking a fatal concoction of Mountain Dew and methanol.
The cocktail, known locally as “Dewshine” is popular amongst teens.
The Greenbrier Police Department identified the deceased as Logan Stephenson and J.D. Byram, both 16.
Stephenson died last Thursday and Byram died Monday.
“This was an unfortunate accident,” Seger said. The doctor told CNN the four boys were in a group that purposely mixed the soda with methanol; a racing fuel, instead of ethanol; consumable alcohol.
Seger is growing concerned as “dewshine” is not a new concoction.
“Typically, people don’t come up with names for something if it’s an isolated event,” she said. “We need to educate people.”
A memorial fund set up by friends of the family aims to educate teens about hidden dangers.
“This memorial fund has been set up to honor J.D.’s life, in the hopes of educating children of the many dangers they may face in their lifetime, which parents may not be not aware of,” he says.
Randy Pack of the Greenbrier Police Department told Buzzfeed that inclusion of methanol may have actually been intentional.
“We interviewed several teenagers that alluded to they may have consumed this,” Pack said.
featured image: Logan Stephenson (left) via Facebook and J.D. Byram via GoFundMe.
