Sheffield pub worker in induced coma after tragic accident at gin distillery

A Sheffield pub worker remains critically ill after being badly burned in a tragic accident at a gin distillery.
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Paul Harrison, assistant manager at The Commercial on Station Road in Chapeltown, was working in Sheffield Distillery at the back of the pub when he suffered his terrible injuries last Tuesday, May 26.

The 33-year-old was making some gin when alcohol sprayed from the still and caught fire, leaving him with first and second degree burns.

The Commercial in Chapeltown, Sheffield (pic: Google)The Commercial in Chapeltown, Sheffield (pic: Google)
The Commercial in Chapeltown, Sheffield (pic: Google)
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Speaking on Monday, June 1, the pub’s owner Paul Menzies told how Mr Harrison remained at the specialist burns unit in Wakefield to which he was transferred from the Northern General Hospital.

“He’s being very well looked after and he remains in a critical but stable condition. They’ve put him in an induced coma, he’s on a ventilator and they’re doing skin grafts but they’re quite happy with his progress,” said Mr Menzies.

“It was an awful accident in which some volatile liquid sprayed from the still and caught fire. We’re all thinking of Paul and hope he makes a good recovery, and we’re grateful for all the messages of support people have been sending via Facebook.”

Mr Menzies added that the cause of the accident was not known at this stage but an investigation had been launched by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The distillery was closed following the tragedy and Mr Menzies said the pub was ‘starting the process’ of getting it up and running agin but that could take some time.”