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."
Sarah 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."
Nadim 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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