THIS WEEK IN 1995: Girl escapes death in drinking experiment

Police warned parents to keep alcohol locked away from children and said they could be as lethal as hard drugs.

The youngster, from Gosport, was rushed unconscious to RN Hospital Haslar after consuming half a bottle of neat gin in the town’s Ann’s Hill Cemetery.

She slipped into a critical state for more than an hour but was moved to St Mary’s Hospital, Milton, once her condition stabilised.

She had been violently sick by the time patrol officer PC Darius Hemmatpour arrived at the scene near the cemetery’s Wilmott Lane entrance.

He said: ‘She was with four friends, all about 12 or 13.

‘The girl had consumed half the bottle in about an hour-and-a-half.

‘Her friends said “we tried to stop her but we couldn’t”.’

He added: ‘Potentially the girl could have died.

‘The parents aren’t to blame but I think parents should educate their children about alcohol as much as drugs.’