A 4-year-old child was left with burns on her face and chest after her mother let a McDonald’s employee fill up the girl’s water bottle.
Emily Dolbeer and her daughter Lainey were headed to Disneyland. They had just gotten through a security checkpoint at Portland International Airport, according to Dolbeer’s Facebook post.
They head to McDonald’s for breakfast. She asked an employee if she would fill up Lainey’s water bottle.
“She asks, ‘Do you want ice’ to which I replied, ‘That would be great.’ Lainey’s water bottle has Disney princesses on it and is a double insulated water bottle that keeps the cold liquids cold and you cannot feel the temperature of the liquids on the inside by holding it,” wrote Dolbeer in the post.
Lainey and her mother were expecting cold water when Lainey started sipping when they got back to their departure gate.
“I hand her the water bottle and she takes a drink and immediately starts screaming bloody murder. The water the employee put in the container was SCALDING HOT WATER,” wrote Dolbeer.
Dolbeer said her daughter’s reaction was intense.
“It was the most little, heart-wrenching sound you’ve ever heard. I turn around and she is just the most inconsolable little human you’ve ever seen,” Dolbeer told KEZI.
Dolbeer told KEZI that sores and blisters quickly developed on Lainey’s mouth, tongue, and chest.
Dolbeer went back to the McDonald’s to demand answers.
“The employees were clueless on how to handle the situation. The ‘manager’ wrote her name down on blank receipt paper and I laughed and said, ‘No, I want an incident report filled out, NOW.’ Lainey’s uncle and myself had to prompt them further to fill out an incident report and we had to request their information multiple times. Extremely unhappy right now with the lack of empathy and compassion of these employees. The lack of knowledge on how to handle an incident,” Dolbeer further wrote in the Facebook post.
The mother ended the post describing her emotional state at the time, along with accompanying pictures of Lainey’s reddened skin after the sip, along with the water bottle.
“I am just absolutely beside myself right now shaking. Lainey already has blisters on her lip, chin, and some on her neck. This is not how I intended to start our long awaited vacation. [expletive] you McDonalds. Sorry not sorry about the language. #mcdonaldsburn,” Dolbeer continued, via Facebook.
Subsequent Facebook posts show Lainey and her mother still continued on to Disneyland and they were there with others as a group. Lainey has a blue bandage on her chin in the post’s photo.
Dolbeer spoke to KEZI by phone from Disneyland about her daughter’s recovery process. She said her daughter is undergoing pain management. She said her daughter is acting different and is having trouble eating, but that there is an upside to the trip.
“I think the fact that we are at the happiest place on earth is the best distraction for her. We actually saw Pluto on the way home from dinner last night. He’s one of her favorites so that put a little smile on her face.” Dolbeer told KEZI.
