Gurugram: 5 Vomit Blood After Eating Mouth Freshener at Café
A group of friends screamed in pain and vomited blood after they were served dry ice as mouth fresheners at Gurugram’s Laforestta Cafe. A video of the same has gone viral on the internet.
A group of friends’ outing turned into a ‘bloody’ nightmare in Gurugram. Here’s what happened! Ankit Kumar, his wife, and their friends visited Laforestta Cafe in Sector 90 of Gurugram on 2nd March 2024 for dinner. After enjoying the cafe's food and drinks, the group of friends ate the mouth fresheners. Immediately after this, all 5 felt a burning sensation and started vomiting blood. They also complained of deep cuts on their tongue. Even rinsing their mouths with water also didn't help. This video is recorded by Kumar himself. It shows the group screaming and crying in pain. A woman can be seen screaming in discomfort with her mouth open and a man is vomiting on the floor. Another woman is seen putting ice on her tongue to cure the burning sensation. The video has gone viral on social media. The group asked café management to call the police. Kumar told the police “We don't know what they have mixed (in the mouth freshener). Everyone here is vomiting. They have cuts on their tongues. Their mouths are burning. Don't know what type of acid they have given us”. He also told the police that restaurant staff fled when they saw the health of all 5 friends rapidly deteriorating. Seeing their critical health condition the police took the group to a hospital. Kumar had taken a packet of the alleged mouth freshener along with him and showed it to the doctor at the hospital. The doctor identified the ‘mouth freshener’ as dry ice. He told Kumar that it is a type of acid that can lead to death. Dry ice is a solid form of carbon dioxide. It forms at -78.5°C. It is used as a refrigerant, for creating smoke or fog effects in entertainment and theater, & for preserving perishable items during shipping and lasts longer than regular water ice. Dry ice is potentially dangerous if not handled properly. It is extremely cold and causes severe frostbite. Therefore, it is not recommended to touch it with bare hands. Because dry ice creates smoke or fog when it comes in contact with liquid, especially water, and not when at room temperature, the 5 friends must have mistaken it for sugar/mishri chunks and hence ate it. As soon as the group ate the dry ice pieces, it came in contact with the saliva in the mouth and made deep cuts on the tongue and the mouth walls. Swallowing some of it is what may have induced vomiting with blood from the cuts in stomach, esophagus (food pipe), and mouth. Four out of the five friends have been hospitalized and two of them are said to be in critical condition. Kumar lodged an official complaint and the police registered an FIR against the cafe’s owner under Indian Penal Code IPC sections 328 - causing hurt by means of poison and IPC section 120-B - criminal conspiracy on 3rd March 2024. On 5th March 2024, The food and supply department sealed the cafe and the police arrested the cafe’s manager on 5th March 2024 and assured the media reporters that they are further investigating the case and will take action as per the law. Gurugram Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav has asked the food and supply department to prepare a list of all the restaurants, pubs, cafes, and bars that use dry ice and has asked all the establishments (restaurants, pubs, cafes and bars) to give proper training for storing and handling dry ice.
