The kids are perfectly fine now and were immediately rushed to hospital after the mistake was discovered.
Marcus and Michele visited a local Italian restaurant in Perth with their two young girls named Hannah (12) and Olivia (11). After taking their seats and looking over the menu briefly they ordered their drinks, the two sisters were expecting cranberry juice to be walked out to them, what they received was actually Citronella insect repellant.
The girls took a brief sip before immediately spitting it out and informing their parents of its “poison taste”. Michele picked up the beverage to taste for herself and immediately also spat out the drink. The girls father, Marcus, has claimed that the restaurant refused to show him the bottle the beverages were served from but the restaurant repeatedly informed them it was old cranberry juice.
“My daughters just went to gulp it down, and they both spat the cranberry juice out and said, ‘It’s poisoned,’ … I said, ‘Don’t be silly,’ and took the glass, and I went to gulp it down and then spat it out … We’re lucky that the children weren’t younger … If they were younger children that this happened to, I’d hate to think what would have happened.” – Michele with an interview with the ABC
“He took the bottle out of the fridge and placed it under the counter. That’s when I sort of said, ‘No, you need to give me the bottle, I need to see what it is'” – Marcus in an interview with the ABC
“My husband grabbed it and looked at it and he said ‘it’s citronella oil mixed with insect repellent — you’ve poisoned them. I was just focused on looking after my girls. The restaurant was full but I wasn’t even aware of anyone in the restaurant. It was like, ‘Oh my god’. The girls were crying. There was instant burning because they swallowed it. They spat some out but they had also swallowed it. I had swallowed it too and the taste was awful.” – Michele in an interview with The West Australian
The young girls were immediately rushed to hospital where thankfully no major issues were found, they did however experience headaches, and burning sensations in their stomach. The restaurants former owner has been found guilty of selling unsafe food, as well as, failing to exercise due diligence. As a result the restaurant was fined $28,000 Australian Dollars.
