London student 'nearly died' after drink was spiked

Emily Earle, 19, was on a girl's holiday to Crete, Greece, with four of her pals when they headed to a party.

But after two hours Emily was sipping her third drink when she started feeling very unwell - falling asleep on the table at just 5.30pm before becoming very thirsty.

A few hours later after going back to their hotel, Emily was struggling to breathe and falling in and out of consciousness, and was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, she said.

She says doctors confirmed she had swallowed drugs, and she thinks a fellow party-goer must have slipped something into one of her drinks.

Emily is a student in London. (Image: SWNS)

Her worried mum had to fly out to the resort and bring her back to the UK.

Emily, a medical student from King's College London, said: "This was a horrible experience which was really traumatic for me, my family and my friends.

"I nearly lost my life. I was wary of the heat and the party was extremely busy so I didn't drink much."

She added: "Shortly after getting back to our hotel I was in a critical condition because I was struggling to breathe - I deteriorated very fast.

"My friends and family were terrified. They thought they were losing me.

"My memory is patchy from around 5.30pm and I don't remember much after leaving the party.

Emily's mum flew out to be with her. (Image: SWNS)

"Being spiked feels like one of those things that happens to someone else, or people who aren't careful, but it can happen to anyone, no matter how careful you are.

"It's very scary. You feel like you've got no control - all your choices have been taken away from you."

Emily and her friends headed out on June 23.

They were on the Malia strip on Wednesday, June 26 when they bought tickets for a party.

At the event, Emily says she had a Malibu and Coke, and a sex on the beach cocktail, before starting a vodka and pineapple.

She felt really drunk suddenly and began falling asleep.

She said: "I just couldn't understand it - none of my drinks had been strong."

Emily's friend took care of her. (Image: SWNS)

Emily's friends got her some food, and she had two BLTs, a burger and an ice cream, but was still ravenous and very thirsty.

Emily's friends took her back to the hotel around 7.30pm.

Back at their hotel, they put her to bed and her condition deteriorated fast, and she lay on the floor.

Emily's hands and feet were freezing to the touch and her skin was red and blotchy.

Her breathing was shallow and rapid and she couldn't feel her legs or open her eyes, and was losing consciousness.

The hotel staff called an ambulance and her frightened friends FaceTimed Emily's family - and they all thought she might die, Emily says. 

She was taken to Herculanium University Hospital at around 9pm, where she was put on a drip.

She woke the following morning feeling well and was told there were drugs found in her stomach, but medics couldn't say which drugs without a full toxicology report which needed to be requested by the police.

Emily's mum arrived at the resort in the early afternoon, and the group flew back to the UK on Sunday, June 30.

Emily, from Crawley, West Sussex, said: "I really have no idea how it happened - we were so careful.

"We are very sensible and we did everything as a group. We were together all the time.
(Image: SWNS)

"I'm very aware of the risks and very cautious.

"A boy bought me a drink when we arrived and I didn't touch it.

"If I had to put a drink down for any reason I didn't go back to it.

"I had my hand over the top of my drinks when I wasn't drinking it and I even took my drinks to the toilet with me.

"I can only imagine someone nudged me and someone else slipped something in while I was distracted - the party was really crowded.

"Everyone was searched on the way in, but if someone wants to bring in drugs they'll find a way."

The language barrier meant Emily wasn't able to get much information about her hospital stay, and put her off reporting the incident to the police.

She said: "It's really important to stick with your friends. Don't accept a drink from someone else and don't leave your drinks unattended.

"Stay in your group and be very vigilant. Don't drink anywhere near your limit - this can make it easier for someone to distract you.

"If you're not feeling right tell someone straight away. Look out for unusual behaviour from each other.

"If someone's acting out of character stick with them and get them to somewhere safe as quickly as you can, because they could be taken."