Dad had to call wife and son so daughter, 15, who collapsed on BA flight after eating Pret A Manger baguette could ‘say goodbye’
A court heard how the 15-year-old's father called her mum and brother in the UK so they could 'say goodbye' moments before she passed away
A DEVASTATED dad called his wife and son so they could say goodbye to his teen daughter when she collapsed on BA flight after eating Pret A Manger baguette.
Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, 15, told her distraught father she "could not breathe" after consuming the artichoke, olive and tapenade sandwich she had bought at Heathrow Airport.
Nadim Ednan-Laperouse, a millionaire owner of Wow Toys from Fulham, tried to save the schoolgirl by giving her two doses of drugs and administering an EpiPen, but she died later in a hospital in France.
Today a court heard how he called her mother and brother in the UK and put the phone to ear so they could "say goodbye", moments before she passed away.
He said: "The pain and agony of the call was beyond anything I have known.
"These calls I had to make were the worst of my life. Each of them was completely overwhelmed, distressed and shocked."
The inquest heard how Natasha complained "within three minutes" of an itchy throat and asked her friend if she had a "red throat".
Nadim said: "She said she was feeling sick and asked me to stop eating my tuna baguette as the smell was making her feel worse. She went to the toilet to look at her throat.
"At that stage I was still not concerned. 35 minutes into the flight she said she was feeling worse."
He later became concerned when she showed him her midriff to reveal hives that looked like "jelly fish stings".
They went to the toilet together to administer an EpiPen, but neither the first or second had any effect.
Mr Ednan-Laperouse recalled: "Natasha said that she could not breathe and looked at me to save her. She said 'Daddy help me, I can't breathe'.
"Her stomach was heaving in and out as she was trying to breathe. I immediately called cabin crew to get her an oxygen cylinder and mask."
The inquest heard a junior doctor who had graduated medical school the day before was asked to help Natasha as she started to "slump forward" and was not able to hold herself up.
Thomas Pearson-Jones said: "She was extremely unwell. Her lips were swollen and she was struggling to breath. As well as being swollen her lips were blue."
A member of cabin crew was asked to hold her head up as she was laid down on the floor.
CPR was administered by the junior doctor and another member of cabin crew for the remainder of the flight as Natasha went into cardiac arrest.
The frantic efforts to save her lasted until the flight landed around 50 minutes after CPR was started and an hour and ten minutes after Mr Ednan-Laperouse gave Natasha the first epipen.
The inquest also heard how the pair had both inspected the ingredients before she ate the baguette, which had sesame seeds embedded into the bread.
She was severely allergic to dairy, banana, sesame seeds and nuts, West London Coroner's Court heard.
Natasha's heartbroken mother Tanya could be seen wiping her eyes as she listened to the statement describing her farewell over the phone on July 17, 2016.
Her husband told the inquest: "As a family now of three, my wife, son and I are still trying to adjust to life without our beloved girl. It’s a daily battle and the pain is indescribable.
"Everything we say and do is a reminder that she isn’t with us, her empty bedroom, school uniform hanging in her wardrobe, her holiday bag packed for her holiday in Nice has never been unpacked. We can’t bear to."
Natasha was popular pupil at Lady Margaret School, a Church of England academy in Fulham, who loved horses and ice-skating and hoped to become a lawyer.
The inquest could lead to product labelling laws being ramped up.
Sesame is one of 14 allergens that EU laws say must be listed in pre-packaged food made off premises.
But a loophole means companies do not have to list it if the food is prepared on the same day in an on site kitchen.
Instead signs are supposed to be put up on shelves and tills to warn customers of potential allergens.
Pret said an allergen guide was provided in all shops and online detailing the 14 declarable allergens contained in its products.
It added that at the time of Natasha’s death, there was – and still is– allergen signage on each fridge and at till points, and that before the death, it had started to make enhancements to allergen information provided to customers and the design of the signage.
All its product shelf tickets now identify if the product contains any of the 14 declarable allergens, the company said.
British Airways bosses will also feature at the inquest to discuss safety procedures and staff training.
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A Pret spokesman said: “We were deeply saddened to hear about Natasha’s tragic death, and our heartfelt thoughts are with her family and friends.
We take food allergies and how allergen information is provided to our customers extremely seriously.
We will continue to do all that we can to assist the Coroner’s inquest.”
A BA spokesman said the airline was very sorry to hear of Natasha’s death and its “thoughts remain with her family”.
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