British Trainee Pilot Dies After Fatal Mosquito Bite On Forehead
Sanj Patel
Jul 08, 2022
A British trainee pilot has died after she was bitten on the forehead by a mosquito in Belgium, an inquest hearing has said.
Oriana Pepper, from Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, was bitten by the insect while in Antwerp in July 2021 and was soon hospitalised when the infection began to spread to her brain.
According to a judicial inquiry, the 21-year-old went to the emergency room after the bite near her right eye appeared swollen and infected where she was prescribed antibiotics that did not work. Just two days later, she was rushed back to hospital after she collapsed and subsequently passed away.
Suffolk’s senior coroner, Nigel Parsley, said that Pepper died “as a result of a serious infection caused by an insect bite to the forehead,” adding: “An infection has entered Oriana’s skin following a bite by an insect. It’s then gone into the carotid artery of the neck and led to septic emboli in her brain. I’ve never seen a case like this before. It’s just one of those things that’s just such an unfortunate tragedy for a young lady who clearly had a wonderful career and life ahead of her.”
The BBC reported that Pepper had easily passed her theory exams on the EasyJet and then went to Belgium to begin further training. According to The Sun, her boyfriend, James, said the couple was bitten multiple times since arriving in Belgium in May but was told by locals it was “normal for the area and time of year”.
Attending the inquest, and later issuing a statement, Mr Pepper said his daughter “loved nothing better than to go flying with her dad and her brother Oliver, also a trainee commercial pilot”. He said his daughter described flying as “having an office in the sky amongst the clouds”.
https://www.complex.com/life/trainee-pilot-dies-mosquito-bite