Woman drinks lye-laced sweet tea at Utah restaurant, suffers severe burns to mouth, throat

Police are reviewing video footage and interviewing staff from a Utah restaurant where a woman drank sweet tea laced with an industrial cleaning chemical, severely burning her mouth and throat.

South Jordan Police Cpl. Sam Winkler said Thursday investigators hope videos from inside Dickey's Barbecue Pit in South Jordan will reveal how the chemical known as lye ended up in a jug with sweet tea.

Winkler says they also are interviewing employees who worked that day or in the weeks before.

The 67-year-old woman was eating at the restaurant Sunday when she poured herself a glass of tea from the beverage bar. She is in critical condition.

Winkler says it appears to be an accident, though authorities haven't made a final determination.

He says the woman is the only victim. Her name has not been released.