East Grinstead boy dies of allergic reaction to spaghetti Brighton News

Restaurant staff were warned of the boy’s severe cheese and milk allergies, but the waitress did not understand their request and assured them it was safe.

Cameron collapsed after eating the meal in front of his mother Cassandra, 43, father Rizwan, 43, and baby brother Aidan, before suffering cardiac arrest. His mother, a nurse, managed to give her son an EpiPen, but the schoolboy died in hospital three days later on October 30.

The parents described their son’s death as the “worst day of their lives” and fought a long legal battle against the restaurant La Margherita Villa Giuseppina.

In September 2019, waitress Ester Di Lascio was convicted of manslaughter by an Italian court in Salerno and sentenced to two years in prison.

It was found that Di Lascio did not correctly identify possible allergic reactions caused by the ingredients of the dishes on the restaurant’s menu.

The pasta Cameron ate was served with a tomato sauce made with milk by chef Luigi Cioffi, who was later cleared of any wrongdoing.

The family in East Grinstead, West Sussex, have been awarded compensation by the court of around £ 288,000.

Cameron Wahid died in October 2015

Mr Wahid said his son’s death was preventable and called for lessons to be learned and awareness of the severity of allergies.

“Watching him go into anaphylactic shock and suffer like that was without a doubt the worst experience of our life,” he said. “He was a lovely little boy and he always brightened our days.

“We believe his death was preventable and we still find it difficult to accept that he is no longer here.

“Cameron’s allergy has always been severe, but we were so careful with him and scrupulous with what he ate.”

Photograph of Salerno by Andrey Belenko

Since the death of his son, Mr Wahid has started working as an Ambassador for Allergy UK, the UK’s leading charity supporting people with allergies.

“We know nothing will bring him back, but we want to help prevent others from suffering from the pain that we continue to feel,” he said. “People need to know how serious allergies can be.

“For us, it was all about using the criminal trial process in Italy to ensure justice is done for Cameron, which we did, as well as establishing facts and learning lessons so others didn’t. to suffer as one has. ”

The family also received an undisclosed sum of money to help access specialist support and overcome their ordeal.

International serious injury lawyer Daniel Matchett, who represented the family, said the allergic reaction “could and should have been avoided.”

“Cassandra and Riz have always been very careful about controlling Cameron’s allergies, and losing him has had such a devastating impact on them,” he said. “While they can’t go back and change what happened, Cassandra and Riz want to make people aware that allergies are potentially life-threatening to make sure that no one else is going through what they have. . ”