It was supposed to be a birthday celebration.
On October 4, 2012, Gaby Scanlon was celebrating her 18th birthday with friends at Oscar’s Wine Bar and Bistro in Lancaster, England.
At the bar, she was offered a dramatic-looking cocktail made using liquid nitrogen. The drink produced a thick, smoking effect, making it look more like something from a science experiment than an ordinary cocktail.
She accepted the drink.
What happened next turned her birthday into a medical emergency.
She suddenly knew something was wrong
After drinking the shot, Scanlon began experiencing intense pain. She later told a court that smoke was coming from her nose and mouth and that her stomach began to expand.
She was quickly taken to Lancaster Royal Infirmary, where doctors discovered that she had suffered a large perforation in her stomach.
Doctors determined that she needed emergency surgery.
The operation was so serious that surgeons removed her stomach and connected her oesophagus directly to her small intestine in an effort to save her life.
Without the emergency treatment, police said the injury could have proved fatal.
The drink was never supposed to be consumed like that
Liquid nitrogen is extremely cold. It can be used to create dramatic effects in food and drinks, but it must completely evaporate before anything containing it is consumed.
In Scanlon’s case, the court heard that the bar had not carried out an appropriate risk assessment for the drinks.
There had also been concerns about the use of liquid nitrogen at the establishment before the incident. A health and safety officer had previously raised concerns and provided guidance, but the court heard that the warnings were not properly acted upon.
The case returned to court three years later
In 2015, Oscar’s Wine Bar and Bistro pleaded guilty to failing in its duty to ensure the safety of people who were not employees.
The company was ordered to pay £100,000.
The judge described the bar’s failings as serious and said the company had shown a “flagrant disregard” for safety.
By then, Scanlon was still dealing with the consequences of what happened.
Reports from the time said she experienced continuing pain, had to eat small amounts frequently and required vitamin injections because of the changes to her digestive system.
A birthday drink that changed everything
The incident is a disturbing reminder that something designed purely for visual effect can become extremely dangerous when handled incorrectly.
The cocktail may have looked harmless.
But for Scanlon, a drink offered during her 18th birthday celebration ended with emergency surgery, the loss of her stomach and years of health problems.
And the bar eventually paid a six-figure fine for what happened.
