Luebeck, Germany - Two German students who fell into a coma after drinking what appeared to be tainted alcohol in Turkey were fighting for their lives in a German hospital on Friday.

The students were flown home on Thursday evening and taken to the intensive care unit of the University Clinic in the northern city of Luebeck.

The students from a vocational college were on holiday at the Mediterranean resort of Kemer when they fell ill after drinking spirits purchased either from their hotel or a local market.

On March 26 the students and their friends were in a hotel room drinking the spirits when they called for help after one of the group fell unconscious.

Paramedics found Rafael Neca, 21, dead, and transported the other tourists to a local hospital.

German doctors who conducted an autopsy of Neca's body said he died from methanol poisoning. He was due to be buried in Luebeck on Friday.

"We are completely shocked at what happened," said Ruediger Knoll, deputy head of the Mortzfeld vocational college in Luebeck where the students were studying.

The students purchased the alcohol despite being under orders from their teachers not to do so.

Investigators are probing to see whether the spirits were laced with a methanol, a non-drinkable type of alcohol used for industrial purposes.

Turkey has a history of fake liquors made by illegal home distilleries being sold in markets and restaurants. (dpa)