British Girl, 2, in Hospital in Cyprus After Drink Blunder

A two-year-old British girl was in a serious condition in hospital in Cyprus last night after accidentally being served orange juice mixed with detergent at a luxury hotel, police said.

Annabel Rhodes suffered burns to her mouth and esophagus after ingesting what doctors described as a "highly corrosive acid" in the resort of Limassol on Saturday night. She was taken to an intensive care unit in the capital, Nicosia, where she was initially kept on a ventilator. She is now fully conscious but being closely monitored.

Police said the incident happened after the girl's father, Mark Rhodes, ordered a drink of diluted orange juice from a barman, but instead of water the beverage was diluted with dishwasher cleaning fluid. The colorless, odorless liquid had mistakenly been left on a surface in a water bottle, according to police in Nicosia.

"It appears that a bartender unknowingly mixed orange juice with a dishwasher detergent stored in a small plastic bottle at the bar," a police spokesman said.

Mr Rhodes, 55, who is chief executive of oil transportation companies Petrotrans and Alegratrans, also tried the drink at the four-star Curium Palace hotel and received first aid before being discharged. He and Annabel's mother Judith, who live in Paddington, west London, were by her bedside yesterday where she was said to be stable. Rhodes requested "total privacy" in what he described as "a highly emotional and difficult time".

A spokesman for the family said: "This is an intensely personal matter. We think she is making progress."

A doctor in the intensive care unit said: "She's off the respirator. We think she stands a good chance to pull through but obviously there are concerns. It was a highly corrosive nitric acid that this little girl ingested." Andreas Hajidemetriou, director of the hospital's pediatric ward, told Reuters: "She appears to be doing better. If the child continues breathing on her own, that is a big step. We will wait for her condition to stabilize and then try to ascertain if there will be any long-term problems from the burns." The detergent was being tested to determine the precise compound, he added.

A spokesman for Michael Timinis, manager of the hotel, refused to comment to the Guardian yesterday afternoon and said: "I have no idea whether we will be making a statement on this matter."

Orestis Rossides, UK director of the Cyprus Tourism Organization, said Annabel was being closely monitored for possible damage to her esophagus, stomach and lungs.

"This was an isolated incident amongst the many visitors to Cyprus," he said. "We would like to express our sincerest sorrow for this tragic accident. We would like to reassure the British public that the girl is receiving the best possible care."

The owner of a nearby hotel described Mark and Judith Rhodes as "top of the range. They are very loving parents, so this will be a massive shock," he said.