‘Daddy help, I can’t breathe’: desperate plea of allergy girl who died after eating Pret a Manger sandwich at airport

A schoolgirl who died from a severe sesame allergy after eating an airport Pret a Manger sandwich cried out “Daddy help me, I can’t breathe” as she suffered a fatal seizure on a plane, an inquest heard today.

Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, 15, had bought an artichoke, olive and tapenade baguette at the shop in Heathrow Terminal 5 before boarding a flight to Nice with her family. She collapsed during the flight, on July 17, 2016, and later died in a French hospital.

The sesame was believed to have been baked into the baguette, rather than in seeds on its crust.

Giving evidence at her inquest this morning, Natasha’s father, Nadim Ednan-Laperouse, said: “There was no indication of sesame seeds on the packaging of the baguette.”

Mr Ednan-Laperouse said Natasha’s allergies were identified at a young age, and the family relied on food packaging to flag up any dangers. He told the inquest they believed there was “no need” to ask Pret staff about the baguette as he and Natasha had inspected the packaging and shelf signs.

Mr Ednan-Laperouse said his daughter told him she started to feel symptoms a few minutes after eating the sandwich, including an itch in the throat and a stomach rash. He took her to the toilet on the plane to administer an EpiPen injection.

In a statement he described how his daughter told him: “Daddy help me, I can’t breathe.”

“Unfortunately she didn’t appear to be responding,” he added. She collapsed forward and her condition appeared to be “rapidly worsening”. Natasha suffered a cardiac arrest around an hour into the flight, and a junior doctor on board administered CPR with cabin crew until the plane landed in Nice.

Mr Ednan-Laperouse, who is the founder of Wow Toys in Fulham, told the court that when they landed in Nice the defibrillator brought by French emergency services did not work.

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.”

The firm’s products are not individually marked with ingredients or allergens, but customers are advised by signs on shelves and by the tills to ask a manager for further information, which is also available on the company’s website.

The inquest is expected to examine food labelling regulations.

Mr Ednan-Laperouse’s wife Tanya and their son Alex, 14, are both at the hearing in front of coroner Dr Sean Cummings, which is due to last five days.