Well, this isn’t the worst history of tainted alcohol resulting in deaths and injuries.
We can thank the US government for that during prohibition. They’re probably just refining their techniques.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/poison-alcohol-prohibition
https://www.alcoholproblemsandsolutions.org/deaths-during-prohibition/
“Jake leg” sounds like it was great fun./s
In the 1930s, though, a specific affliction struck moonshine drinkers in a number of Southern states. It is estimated that some 50,000 people were crippled with partial paralysis, mostly in their legs, as a result of drinking “jake”. In some cases the paralysis proved to be temporary, but nearly all victims were forced to walk with in high-stepping, foot-slapping style that quickly became known as the “jake walk” or the “jake leg”.
Jake is actually Jamacian ginger extract, marketed and sold as a medicinal tonic for any number of ills. It was available in the United States since about the time of the Civil War, and Americans quickly realized that the nearly 70% alcohol content made “the jake” a way to skirt local or federal laws banning the consumption of liquor. Compared to whiskey, jake was often cheaper, and often had a higher alcohol content. Many drug stores sold Coca-Cola or coffee, which people would then use as mixers for the jake, often using a side room in the store to concoct their drink.
http://www.ibiblio.org/moonshine/drink/jake.html