Chicago

Jagged Shards in Panera Coffee Sent Woman to Hospital: Lawsuit

A woman received emergency medical attention after swallowing jagged plastic pieces in her coffee from Panera Bread, according to a lawsuit.

"I took a sip of my frozen coffee and immediately started coughing and gagging," Cheryl Walker told NBC 5 Thursday.

Walker said she purchased the frozen coffee last week at a Schererville Panera Bread on US 41. She drove 20 minutes to work, but when she arrived she needed immediate help.

"It was to the point I thought I was going to throw up," she said. "And I noticed little pieces in my hand."

Walker said she found several more of the hard jagged pieces in her coffee cup and was rushed to the hospital where her stomach was pumped.

"It was very upsetting for me it was overwhelming," she said.

Now Walker has retained an attorney and filed suit against Panera Bread.

"I think you have to bring it to their attention to find out what happened," Walker's attorney Walter Alvarez said. "God forbid this was a young child and had the bigger pieces they could’ve died."

Panera did not respond to NBC 5's request for comment.

Walker says she won’t ever go back.

"The damage that could have been done if I were to ingest those larger pieces," she said. "It’s scary."

Walker says before filing the suit she did reach out to Panera’s management to inform them of what she experienced, she says she hasn’t heard anything since.

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