Sarah Ferguson has opened up about the heartbreaking moment she comforted the parents of a girl who died from a Pret a Manger sandwich. During a flight back to Britain from France, Nadim and Tanya Ednan-Laperouse were seated in front of the mum-of-two as they were bringing back their daughter's body back home. Natasha Ednan-Laperouse tragically passed away, aged 15, after suffering an allergic reaction from a Pret A Manger baguette containing sesame seeds which had not been labelled on the packaging. Speaking about their encounter, Sarah told The Evening Standard: "I said to the lady I was with, 'They really do look unhappy. Is there anything I can do? Goodness, this is really serious.' I was very worried."
© Photo: Getty ImagesSarah Ferguson has opened up about the moment she comforted the grieving parents
She added: "It was quite extraordinary. They wanted to start talking about Natasha. Her coffin was in the airplane hold. Tanya, oh my gosh, my heart completely just went to her. She didn't [get to] say goodbye to her daughter." Last week, Natasha's parents revealed how Sarah had been a massive support to them after they met her at the airport on their way back to the UK following the tragedy. "I didn't really know how on earth I could help them, except by listening, which is sometimes enough," explained Sarah. "I said: 'All I can do is always be here for you.' I said: ‘What did she love?’ I was trying to make them talk about her extraordinary [life]."
MORE: The moving way Sarah Ferguson helped the parents of Pret allergy victim
She continued: "As I left, I took one of my bracelets off and gave it to Tanya. She still wears it. I try to put myself in [other] people's shoes, and I wouldn't want to be Tanya and Nadim." During their recent appearance on This Morning, Tanya revealed that Sarah had approached the couple in the airport lounge, saying: "She was so heartfelt and wanted to help us in any way she could... She said she would support us all the way through."
© Photo: RexNadim and Tanya talked about their encounter with Sarah on This Morning
Nadim – who was present on the plane when Natasha had her allergic reaction – also recalled how he had tried to save her by using two EpiPens, but that they didn’t work. Nadim said: "I knew exactly what to do. It didn’t help at all. I was utterly stunned as my daughter continued to say, 'Daddy I can't breathe, help me, help me, I can't breathe.'" The devastated dad added: "As a father, it's nothing worse, as a family there's nothing worse than helping your child live as she's dying in front of you. It's really, really bad. Terrible."
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