Bar Risa in Birmingham apologises for bad taste night, which featured a 'quarantine' and asked revellers to pass through a 'decontamination tunnel'
A nightclub has come under fire for hosting a Halloween party themed around killer virus Ebola.
An advert for the student event declared that Birmingham’s entertainment district had been “infected” by the deadly disease.
And it went on to claim the World Health Organisation (WHO) was advising students to go to the bar for “decontamination and quarantine”.
Bar Risa in Broad Street, Birmingham, was decked out for the inappropriate occasion with fake biohazard tape reading “Quarantine” and signs in red paint outside the club told revellers they were in a “Safe zone”.
Promotion staff and bar tenders wore hazmat-style contamination suits and party-goers – many dressed as zombies – had to walk through a “decontamination tunnel” to access to the club.
Wednesday's bad-taste party followed news of the WHO confirming that nearly 5,000 people have died from Ebola, the fatal disease that has gripped Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
And scores of horrified people took to social media to criticise the event, reports the Birmingham Mail.
So bar risa in brum held an Ebola themed Halloween party.... #classy
— Jason Alexander (@0wasp) October 30, 2014 Bar Risa are having an "Ebola breakout party" for halloween? That's disgusting and so disrespectful.
— Min Jhitta✨ (@minjhitta) October 29, 2014 @RisaSuperclub I cannot begin to put into words how bad taste & insensitive this #Ebola party is. You are a complete bunch of idiots
— ReeRee (@NoWalkITPark) October 29, 2014 Bar Risa apologised for hosting the event, which they claimed was run by an unidentified "third party promoter".
A spokesman for the nightclub added that they would donate profits made from the night to the Doctors Without Borders charity.
He said: “The event was run by a third-party promoter and we can only apologise for such a huge error of judgement on our part in letting them run the event.
“We will be donating all profits from the night to Doctors Without Borders and we wholeheartedly apologise to anyone we have offended.”
Bar Risa’s Facebook page explains that Wednesday nights at the club – known as I Love Risa – are affiliated with University College Birmingham.
The club’s Facebook page said: “Every single Wednesday night we have great themes and fun stuff to do!
“Everyone is welcome but it is students only upstairs!”
A comment posted on the nightclub’s Facebook page hours before the event said: “I Love Risa is back tonight with a massive Halloween party!!
"The venue has been designated an infection free zone. The World Health Organisation advises everyone to head to Risa for Decontamination and Quarantine!!”
The nightclub caused controversy earlier this month when it hosted EDL supporters ahead of their rally in Centenary Square.
