Mum on battle for life after bar mixes chemical into drink

Jun 1 2008 Exclusive by Raymond Hainey

A MUM left fighting for her life after bar staff mixed her drink with deadly poison has spoken of her fury after no one was prosecuted.

Fran Nichol, 39, collapsed in agony after sodium hydroxide was unwittingly poured into her rum instead of apple juice.

Her weight almost halved to 4st 8lb as she endured a string of throat operations.

But nearly a year after the horrific incident neither staff or the pub's owners have been held responsible for almost killing her.

Fran said: "Someone must know how that chemical got into a juice bottle and how that bottle got into the fridge.

"I don't believe someone set out to hurt me but their breach of health and safety regulations was criminal.

"I'm not out for the blood of the person responsible. I just want to make sure something like this is never able to happen again.

"I can't allow what happened to be swept under the carpet."

Fran and her ex-partner Colin Henderson had gone to the John Barleycorn in Dundee's Hilltown area for a meal last July.

Colin ordered Fran a white rum and fizzy apple juice.

After one sip she knew something was wrong but was unable to spit it out and collapsed with a searing pain in her gullet she described as "like acid".

As doctors battled to save Fran's life, police closed down the pub while they launched an urgent investigation into the poisoning.

The barmaid told officers she had taken what she believed was an unopened bottle of fizzy apple juice from the fridge and poured it into a glass.

The chemical it cointained is commonly used for cleaning pipes in pubs.

Fran was rushed to the city's Ninewells Hospital where doctors told her children, Claire, 21, and Jamie, 20, she was in a critical condition.

Her gullet was so badly burned, swollen and covered in blisters, it had almost sealed up. She found it impossible to swallow and struggled to keep water down.

Fran, who had been running her own beauty business, was eventually fitted with a nasal gastric tube to ensure she was getting enough nutrients.

But her weight plummeted from a healthy 8st 7lb before the horror to a painful 4st 8lb. Her lowest point came at Christmas when she became so weak she could barely get out of bed. She said: "Christmas was a turning point for me. I remember my sister looking at me as I was getting into bed.

"She wanted to take my picture.

I thought she was mad but I let her. When I saw the photo and how thin I had become, it shocked me."

With the help of her family, Fran forced herself to eat small amounts of pureed food. Despite the pain of eating, she started to put on weight and feel stronger.

She has had operations to widen her damaged gullet and will need to have at least two more.

But she believes she is finally winning her battle to recover.

Fran's family have asked the pub owners, Scottish and Newcastle UK, for compensation as she has been unable to work since the ordeal.

Scottish and Newcastle UK, bought by a consortium of Carlsberg and Heineken last month, are now talking to Fran.

In a letter in January, MD of Scottish and Newcastle UK Jeremy Blood said: "At the time of the incident CMC Management were the leaseholder of the pub and held the licence. They had responsibility for the health and safety of staff and customers."

CMC Management, who declined to comment, no longer hold the licence or lease for the John Barleycorn and it is under new management.

Yesterday Tayside Police said: "Our officers are still investigating the incident."

'Someone has to know how that chemical got into a juice bottle and how it got into the pub's fridge'

Poison victim Fran

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