A MUM has told of her drive-through Costa coffee nightmare after a large scolding hot drink landed in her lap and left her hospitalised for a fortnight.
Deborah Mann, 54, needed skin grafts to patch up her stomach and thighs after the boiling beverage burned her to the bone.
The life-changing ordeal happened in a split second when she was handed a cup so hot she lost her grip as it melted her finger tips.
She’s now suing the coffee giant who she claims failed to get appropriate help as she waited in agony for her hubby George, 55, to come and take her to A&E.
Deborah, who is still suffering six months on, said: “They handed me the cup and it was so hot my burning hand just let it go.
“I screamed in shock. I drove into the car park and pulled my jeans down to my knees. The skin was falling off me.”
The horror moment happened at Glasgow’s London Road outlet on Sunday, July 28, when Deborah had driven to collect drinks for her family.
But what should have been an enjoyable every day transaction turned into a red raw deal that left Deborah scarred for life.
Deborah, of the city’s Garrowhill, recalled: “I ordered a nice vanilla latte for my daughter Diana, a latte for me and a large Americano without milk for George.
“I knew that George’s would be the hottest because it was just black coffee.
“I decided to pick his up first and put it in the car and then pick the other ones up.
“I misjudged how heavy it was and had to move my hand down because it was going to spill everywhere.
“But it was burning my hand off and my hand just went, ‘No, you’re scalding me’
“So I dropped it reflexively and it went all over me.”
That was just the beginning of an unimaginable ordeal – including having staples pulled out of her leg after medics used undamaged skin to cover her melted wounds.
And she is still aghast when she thinks back to how the drive through staff reacted to her obvious distress.
She says: “Eventually a woman came out and came up with an accident form.
“I asked if she had a bag of ice and she ran back in and got me a bag which I placed on my legs and hand.
“Then I asked for painkillers and she ran back and got some out of her own bag.
“She called George who had to jump in a taxi to get here and take me to the A&E.
“It was about 45 minutes to an hour before I got to the hospital.
“They took me straight in and gave me a dose of morphine.
“But that wasn’t enough and I’m like, ‘Morphine, morphine, I need more morphine’.
“So I got another shot and then using tweezers the nurse basically started peeling the dead skin off.
“Unbeknown to me at that point, because I’ve never been burned in this way before, the liquid was still burning me from Costa to the hospital and I ended up having full thickness burns.”
Deborah’s wounds were bandaged but had to be continually re-dressed for weeks as well as having to have a skin graft operation.
That was done under general anaesthetic but the trauma of having staples taken out when she was awake still haunts her, giving her sleepless nights and flashbacks.
She said: “When they were taking the staples out I was fully aware of what was happening.
“I was so traumatised. It was just the worst thing.”
Brave Deborah, a volunteer at Glasgow Access Panel, is still on the road to recovery and despite the trauma hasn’t lost her sense of humour.
The mum-of-two said: “I’ve been scarred for life but at least I’m not a bikini model, because they wouldn’t have me.
“Costa refunded my £13 bill so at least I got my money back but now I only ever go to Starbucks.”
Joel Shaw, a partner with Thompsons Solicitors who has taken on her compo case, said: “The horrific injuries my client sustained were extremely serious with long lasting consequences.
“The lack of any kind of first aid or even basic competence in dealing with her injuries reflects extremely poorly on Costa Coffee.
“My client and the public in general deserve a much higher standard of safety awareness from such a well known company.
“Costa must now do the right thing and undertake a full safety review in their coffee shops as well as making proper restitution to Deborah for her pain and suffering.”
Costa were approached for comment.
