WARNING: This article contains graphic images
A teenager who went to a Wetherspoon pub for the first time to celebrate her 18th birthday with friends had a ‘traumatic’ night that ended up with her needing staples in her head at a nearby hospital.
Emily Browne, from Cardiff, received a head injury while she was on her first ever night out after being hit with a glass.
She was enjoying a drink with her pals at the V-Shed in Bristol at the time of the assault, having booked a hotel for the night so that she could really enjoy herself.
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However, it all ended seriously badly after she spent the night in A&E on her own.
Police have confirmed that they are investigating an assault on an 18-year-old woman at around 10.10pm on Saturday 15 January.
Still, it is not clear how she was hit by the glass.
Ms Browne needed two staples in the back of her head as a result of the injury.
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She told Bristol Live: "I was in a lot of pain, it was a really traumatic night.
"It was horrible.
"I was bleeding so much that by the time they had put the bandage in it was soaked in blood.
"I am suffering from a bit of short-term memory loss now, as well as having headaches and feeling fatigued.
"I am waking up in the night with nightmares.
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"I do not really feel like I am in the moment, I do not feel like myself."
She was just ordering her second drink at the bar when the back of her head started to feel numb after – she believes – a glass item was chucked from the overlooking balcony area.
Wetherspoon maintains that plastic glasses are used in the pub from 7.00pm every Friday and Saturday.
Browne continued: "My friends heard a loud bang noise, but I didn't know what they were on about.
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"They said it sounded like a glass hitting the bar.
"Then the back of my head went numb and, when I touched it with my hand, it felt.
"It was soaked in blood."
Staff have since found the incident on CCTV.
Browne said she was told an ambulance would have taken hours to reach them, so she had to walk to the hospital and wait on her own due to Covid-19 restrictions.
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Ms Browne added: "I think the worst part of is that there was no context to it, there was nothing to provoke it.
"It was a really horrible assault.
"There was nothing I could have done to stop it. It was totally unprovoked."
A statement from Avon and Somerset Police read: "Police are investigating a report of an assault on an 18-year-old female which took place in V Shed, Canons Road, Bristol on Saturday 15 January at around 10.10pm.
“An item was thrown by an unknown offender, striking the victim’s head and causing injury which required hospital treatment.
“We’d ask anyone who witnessed this incident or has any information to contact police on 101, quoting crime reference 5222012002."
A Wetherspoon spokesperson said: “We are aware of an incident which took place at the V Shed in Bristol on 15 January, where a customer was hit with a plastic glass.
"An ambulance was called by the pub’s staff, but they were told it would not able to attend for some time due to a high level of emergency calls and were advised that the customer should attend a nearby medical unit.
"In the interim, the pub’s door security team administered first aid on the customer. CCTV of the incident has been retained, which will be passed to the police if it is requested. We wish the customer a full and speedy recovery.”
Topics: UK News, Food And Drink, Health
Tom Wood