ELEVEN US soldiers were taken to hospital in El Paso, Texas, last week after consuming antifreeze, having mistaken the liquid for alcohol, a military spokesman has confirmed.

“All injured personnel remain at William Beaumont Army Medical Centre.

“Two soldiers remain seriously ill and are admitted to the intensive care unit,” Lieutenant Colonel Allie Payne said in a statement on Friday. 

The other nine are still “under observation and close lab monitoring.”

The soldiers drank the toxic chemical on Thursday while on a 10-day field exercise, the army said, thinking it was an “alcoholic beverage.”

They soon reported feeling sick and were taken to the hospital for treatment.

They had suffered the effects of ethylene glycol poisoning, according to toxicology reports.

Medical chief Colonel Shawna Scully said the soldiers had shown “significant improvement,” though one was intubated on Friday.

Ingesting ethylene glycol can lead to rapid damage to the kidneys and even organ failure if enough is consumed, Col Scully said.

It is not clear how much of the chemical each soldier drank. Investigations are under way.