- Emma suffers from a severe peanut allergy and has actually to carry an EpiPen
- Family say FinnAir refused to make on-board announcement regarding allergy
- Mother, Kathy, paid ‘thousands’ for brand-new flights estate along with British Airways
- Finnair apologised and said they cannot guarantee a nut-free environment
Georgia Diebelius For Mailonline
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Emma Miller, 17, suffers from a severe peanut allergy and has actually to carry an EpiPen along with her at all times
Airborne particles or even touching surfaces along with traces of the nut can easily cause her throat to close as she goes in to anaphylactic shock.
After booking the flights on Finnair, the group’s travel agent informed the company on three occasions regarding Emma’s allergy yet received no response.
They were then horrified to be told nuts would certainly still be served on the plane as quickly as it flew from Heathrow Airport.
The fuming family confronted the stewards that finally relented and agreed not to sell any peanuts, yet then refused to make an announcement regarding the situation.
The same situation unfolded on the connecting flight from Helsinki and passenger unknowingly opened a packet of nuts, she had taken on to the plane, in the row in front of the family.
The family said that they confronted the stewards that finally relented and agreed not to sell any peanuts, yet then refused to make an announcement regarding the precarious situation
NUT ALLERGIES ON AN AIRCRAFT
Speaking to MailOnline Travel, Amena Warner, Nurse Advisor at Allergy UK, said: ‘There is a risk that a nut allergic passenger could experience allergy symptoms while travelling on an aircraft.
‘The main risk comes from cross contamination – if various other passengers consume peanuts devoid of washing their hands afterwards, and then touch points like the tray tables and seat belts, traces of peanut protein maybe transferred.
‘Highly peanut allergic people, might potentially suffer a serious allergic reaction called anaphylaxis.
‘Symptoms of which could include difficulty in breathing and swelling of the tongue or throat, or collapse.
‘Peanut allergy has actually doubled in the last ten years and this is the leading cause of anaphylaxis because of food.
‘Anaphylaxis is a potentially fatal condition. yet not every person along with peanut allergy reports having a problem. as quickly as it does occur, it can easily be really distressing.’
Mrs Miller said the passenger had been as shocked as the family as quickly as she realised the danger to the Colchester Sixth Form college student.
‘We explained the situation to the passenger and she was mortified.
‘She looked so upset and shoved them away immediately, while apologising, to us,’ she added.
Mrs Miller, 48, fumed: ‘We could not believe the attitude of the staff.
‘It was insensitive and bordering on arrogant and was really pretty cruel to Emma.
‘They said ‘we can’t do anything’ yet all we were asking them was to take a few nut products off their shopping cart and make an announcement to the various other passengers.’
‘It might not be essential to them yet for us it really could be the difference between her living and dying.’
Emma’s allergy is so severe she was the only participant unable to finish a recent hospital course which introduces tiny amounts of peanut in a bid to increase tolerance.
The student said: ‘Just what is a lot more essential to them – selling a few chocolate bars along with nuts in or my life.
‘And even if they are not willing to modification their policy, I believe we ought to have actually made us aware and we could have actually made alternative arrangements.’
Her mother added: ‘On a flight Emma is cautious regarding even going to the toilet as she has actually to touch door handles which various other individuals have actually touched. As quickly as we get hold of on board we use wet wipes to wipe the arm rests and surfaces.
‘A few milligrams is enough for a reaction and EpiPens are only supposed to preserve her alive until the paramedics arrive. They only last for ten minutes and obviously this is a major problem as quickly as you are flying.’
The family of four travelled to Ivalo in Finland, via Helsinki, for a dream trip to see the Northern Lights
Emma’s allergy is so severe she was the only participant unable to finish a recent hospital course which introduces tiny amounts of peanut in a bid to increase tolerance
The upset family said the experience has actually made them have actually to think about taking face masks for Emma, along along with rubber gloves.
During their holiday the family desperately tried to make alternative arrangements to get hold of home, yet could not discover any various other flights from Ivalo.
On the trip spine to Helsinki, staff were again unaware of the situation and only agreed to sell nuts away from the family.
The family then split up on the flight spine to London along with Mrs Miller’s husband Greg, 50, and various other daughter – university student Becky, 19, continuing on the Finnair flights.
Mrs Miller was forced to shell out thousands of pounds for the business class British Airways tickets for herself and Emma.
She praised the firm for its handling of their predicament.
After explaining the situation, British Airways happily gave out warnings regarding Emma’s allergy upon boarding and Throughout the flight.
Emma said she was attempting not to let the experience taint her amazing holiday memories.
The family spent a week away in Finland, staying in a snow igloo at Kakslauttanen.
Speaking to MailOnline Travel, a spokesperson for Finnair said: ‘We are sorry to hear the family has actually been disappointed along with their experience along with Finnair.
‘because of the processes used in the kitchens of our catering supplier, Finnair unfortunately cannot ensure that any dishes are 100 per cent devoid of traces of peanuts.
‘Also, we cannot control Just what various other passengers bring on board, nor are we able to make special arrangements regarding, [for example] cabin announcements or service on board. Nuts are Likewise a portion of our Sky Bistro buy-on-board offering.
‘If you suffer from a severe allergy, it is essential that you are aware that we cannot ensure an allergen-free meal, cabin or environment.
‘Please speak to your doctor prior to you buy tickets to discuss the potential risks and how you can easily minimize them. If you have actually been prescribed an epinephrine or adrenaline auto injector like EpiPen, guarantee you carry this along with you in your carry-on baggage.’
from Golden Land Travel http://ift.tt/1OwSD8K
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