Mother-of-one ‘left with chemical burns’ after she accidentally ate a handful of mini FIREWORKS

A mother-of-one has claimed that she was left with chemical burns after she accidentally ate a handful of mini fireworks thinking they were popping candy.

Lisa Boothroyd, from Rugby, Warwickshire, said she found the multicoloured box of Fun Snaps among the lollipops in a Costcutter store when she was buying snacks for her and her neighbours, and assumed because of the placement they were confectionery. 

But the 48-year-old claimed that after returning home and throwing a handful into her mouth she soon realised that they were actually small novelty fireworks sold as trick noisemakers. 

Lisa Boothroyd, from Rugby, Warwickshire, claimed that she was left with chemical burns after she accidentally ate a handful of mini fireworks thinking they were popping candy

Lisa said the product exploded in her mouth and that she was in instant agony before being left with chemical burns on her lips and gums.

She claims the mini explosions also cracked a tooth, for which she was prescribed strong painkillers to combat the soreness, and that the incident left her mouth feeling like it was ‘on fire’ for weeks – meaning she could barely eat or sleep. 

Lisa, who is currently unemployed, said: ‘I remember the moment I crunched down on a handful of the “sweets” – and instantly felt explosions in my mouth.

‘I felt a burning pain straight away. I’m still in agony and nearly lost a tooth after it cracked from the explosion.

‘The “fun snaps” were with all the other sweets, and the packaging was similar, so it was an easy mistake to make.

The 48-year-old said the product exploded in her mouth and she was in instant agony before being left with chemical burns on her lips and gums

The 48-year-old said the product exploded in her mouth and she was in instant agony before being left with chemical burns on her lips and gums

The mother-of-one, who is currently unemployed, said she she found the multicoloured box of Fun Snaps among the lollipops in Costcutter when she was buying snacks for her and her neighbours

The mother-of-one, who is currently unemployed, said she she found the multicoloured box of Fun Snaps among the lollipops in Costcutter when she was buying snacks for her and her neighbours

‘I just keep thinking what could have happened if I’d given them to a child – they could’ve blown her mouth apart.’

Lisa said she found the rainbow-coloured box in the confectionery aisle at Costcutter in December.

The box reads ‘Fun Snaps’ along with ‘Snap! Crack! Bang!’ which led her to assume it was popping candy. 

She said: ‘That moment I crunched down was terrifying, I had no idea what was happening.

‘I felt explosions in my mouth followed by a burning pain.’

Immediately spitting out the tiny fireworks, she swilled her mouth out with water to numb the burning pain – and said she was shocked to realise what had happened after checking the label on the box.

Lisa claims the mini explosions also cracked a tooth for which she was prescribed strong painkillers to combat the soreness and that the incident left her mouth feeling like it was 'on fire' for weeks - meaning she could barely eat or sleep

Lisa claims the mini explosions also cracked a tooth for which she was prescribed strong painkillers to combat the soreness and that the incident left her mouth feeling like it was ‘on fire’ for weeks – meaning she could barely eat or sleep

Lisa rang NHS Direct and was told to get medical help due to the chemical burns the snaps had caused. 

Attending an emergency dental appointment the same day, she recalled being ‘terrified’ she’d lose all her teeth, when the dentist revealed several were loose and one was cracked.

She said: ‘I was still shaking and in shock the next day, and I was still in so much pain.

‘I had no idea what fun snaps even were, and it’s shocking that they were in the same aisle as all the children’s sweets.’

Fun snaps – also known as poppers, and snappers – are tiny fireworks made of gravel or sand with a minute quantity of silver fulminate high explosive, inside twisted paper.

The friction-sensitive chemical detonates when stepped on or thrown on a hard surface, making a small bang.

Lisa said she was unable to bite down or eat anything apart from bread and butter, or mashed-up Weetabix, for more than a week.

She said she was unable to sleep for weeks due to the chemical burns in her mouth – because she would wake up in the night and it would feel ‘like it was on fire’.

She said: ‘I just can’t believe how much damage those little ‘snaps’ did to my mouth.

‘Worst of all, they were amongst all the children’s sweets – who knows what could have happened if a child had made the same mistake as me?’

Lisa’s chemical burns are recovering and she is booked for an appointment to repair the cracked tooth.

However, she says she is ‘still in shock’ over what happened before adding: ‘Although my injuries were horrible, I’m just relieved I didn’t end up losing a tooth.

‘I just hope nobody else makes the same mistake as me.’

A spokesperson at Costcutter said: ‘The safety of shoppers is our main priority, so we were very concerned to hear about this incident.

‘We have spoken to the independent retailer who operates this store under our Costcutter brand fascia and they have assured us they will remove this item from the confectionery section with immediate effect.’