A South Jordan, Utah employee in Dickey's Barbecue Pit mistakenly took a chemical substance and poured it to an iced tea dispenser before serving it to the couple, Jim and Jang Hardin after they stopped at Dickey's house for a relaxing drink. Little did they know that the iced tea was contaminated with an industrialized cleaning agent and was later found to be the toxic substance lye. The victim's legal attorney announced that Jim's wife took a sip of the tea and started to feel her mouth burning.
Reports showed that the household cleaning agent was accidentally mixed with the sugar and to the ice tea dispenser. The 67-year old Jang Harden was immediately rushed to the hospital for difficulty of breathing and multiple upper airway burns. After numerous medical interventions at Salt Lake Hospital later this week. Mrs. Hardin's breathing tube was removed and is now able to move around and walk.
Lye or caustic soda which is also known chemically as sodium hydroxide is made by the same process as how chlorine gas is made. It is usually used to manufacture detergents, household cleaners and is highly used in petroleum industry. When consumed orally, it can be very deleterious to health as it can cause life threatening upper airway obstruction and shock.
Meanwhile, John Thomas, the franchiser of Utah Dickey's barbecue pit announced their deep regret to the family of the victim and explained that the incident was the first poisoning incident after more than 73-years of service. They are more than willing to cooperate with the health officials and will voluntary submit the establishment for inspection.
Despite the erroneous ice tea incident, the Harden family is not discussing lawsuit and expressed that their entire family's attention is at Jang's recovery and well being.
