Teenager “nearly died” on flight after man refused to stop eating peanuts

"Surely someone’s life is worth more than eating a few nuts?"

The family of a 14-year-old girl who suffered an allergic reaction on a flight have said that she could have died after a man refused to stop eating peanuts. As the MailOnline reports, Joanna Jones and her daughter Poppy were on a British Airways flight from Antigua to London when the latter began to experience an allergic reaction. The teenager was given two shots from an epipen, and the air stewards had to ask if there was a medical professional onboard. When they landed, Poppy was taken to hospital where she thankfully recovered. Since the incident, Joanna has called for new legislation which would criminalise the consumption of nuts on board a plane if another passenger has an allergy. The mum was prompted to do so after she claimed one passenger on their flight refused to stop eating, even when Poppy was in anaphylaxis. Joanna said: "It was a nightmare for all of us and I really thought she might die. It was really, really frightening and it was all down to a passenger who carried on eating nuts despite at least two announcements not to." She went on: "I was worried and asked if we could be moved but there was no availability and the crew asked him to stop eating the nuts but he ignored the requests and carried on. "Surely someone’s life is worth more than eating a few nuts? All the cabin crew can do is ask someone not to eat nuts and that’s it – it’s ridiculous." British Airways has since said that their crew followed protocol for an on-flight allergic reaction. In a statement, they said: "The safety and welfare of our customers is always our priority, and we take the issue of allergens very seriously. "Our crew cared for a customer who appeared to suffer an allergic reaction onboard, and they arranged for paramedics to meet the aircraft."