A WOMAN collapsed in a Bury pub after her glass of wine was spiked with drugs.

Just 24 hours later, a customer at a nearby bar had a lucky escape when she caught a man dropping a tablet into her drink.

Door staff at the Chicago Rock Cafe, in The Haymarket, detained two men who were arrested by police. They have both been given bail pending tests to identify the pills.

Now, police chiefs in Bury are warning revellers not to leave their drinks unattended following reports of similar drink-spiking incidents at the weekend in Bolton and Cheshire.

The most serious incident happened shortly before midnight on Friday at the Pics Bar in Market Street, when a 31-year-old woman suddenly fell ill and collapsed. Colleagues called for an ambulance and the mother-of-one, who works in Bury, was taken to Fairfield General Hospital.

A nurse said: "It would appear this woman had her drink spiked with a drug, possibly liquid ecstasy or something similar. She is very lucky. She could have died."

Similar instances were also reported to police on Friday night after two girls had their drinks drugged at a Bolton pub. Cheshire Police have also issued an alert to clubbers about spiked drinks.

The victim of the Bury incident, who does not want to be identified, is expected to make a full recovery and is being cared for by family at her home in Bolton.

Bury CID have taken away CCTV footage from Pics Bar as part of their investigation.

Inspector Dave McElroy, of Bury Township Police, said: "The incident on Friday night could have had fatal consequences and we could have been dealing with a murder. Thankfully, the victim is expected to make a full recovery.

"It is regrettable that there are people in society who are intent on making others suffer. As more and more people are expected to celebrate the festive season in pubs and clubs across the borough, I would urge revellers not to leave their drinks unattended where they can be tampered with.

"Customers and staff should remain vigilant and report anyone who is seen putting substances, in liquid or pill form, to the police."

Drugs, such as liquid Ecstasy and the date-rape drugs, Ketamine or GHB, are hard to detect because they are odourless and tasteless. The offenders are said to get their kicks out of watching their victim's condition suddenly deteriorate.

Dr Peter Elton, director of public health for Bury Primary Care Trust said: "It is no joke when people spike drinks, it is very dangerous."