Love Island star says 'I could have died' as he slams 'shambolic' airline

07 January 2023 , 13:51

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Love Island star Jack Fowler has said he 'could have died' after suffering a severe allergic reaction on a plane.

The reality TV star said his "throat closed up" and "tongue swelled" as he claimed he was given a desert containing nuts after telling on board staff he is allergic.

Jack, who starred in the 2018 series of Love Island, said the aircraft considered diverting the flight path to get him urgent medical attention.

The incident happened when Jack said he was given vanilla ice cream which contained hidden pistachio nuts.

Jack said he had warned staff about his allergy after being served pastries containing nuts at the start of the flight, but realised before he tucked in.

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Taking to Instagram to speak about the ordeal, Jack branded Qatar Airways an 'absolute shambles.'

"The pilot had contacted different countries to divert to get me treated," he told fans.

"Luckily because I reacted quick we didn't need to... but I cannot begin to tell you how scary that was."

Taking aim at the airline, Jack went on: "I told you five times I'm allergic. You gave me nuts twice. I literally couldn't have died. The next person might not be so lucky."

Love Island star says 'I could have died' as he slams 'shambolic' airline

Jack said 'I could have died' after suffering life-threatening allergic reaction during his flight (_jackfowler_/Instagram)

The Love Island star, who appeared in the 2018 series, said he told staff about his allergy (ITV)

A spokesperson for Qatar said they are 'investigating the incident.'

They told the Mirror: "Passenger health and safety is of paramount importance to Qatar Airways and we require all passengers with severe food allergies to notify the airline no less than 48 hours in advance of flying with a completed medical information form (MEDIF) as instructed on our website.

"The airline will work with the passenger to reduce the risk of contamination but as flights are public, an allergen free environment is not guaranteed.

'We are aware of an issue concerning a passenger who had a reaction to nuts on board and are investigating the incident."

In a second post, Jack penned: "I told @qatarairways hostess’s 5 times I was anaphylactic to nuts (life threatening allergy). As well as asking for reassurance when every meal was served to me, that it was nut free.

"To be given nuts TWICE is such a massive failure from @qatarairways.

"Within seconds I couldn’t breath properly after eating the crushed pistachio nuts beneath my vanilla Ice cream. My throat closed and my tongue felt like it was swelling. I was told the vanilla ice cream was my safest option. It wasn’t.
@qatarairways you have failed in so many ways. I’m extremely lucky. The next person might not be.

"To ALL airlines, there needs to be more done to protect the millions of people with severe dietary requirements while being a passenger on board. Our safety is in your hands when flying with your airline."

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Jack shared pictures of his food to Instagram (_jackfowler_/Instagram)

The Love Islander had been enjoying some new year sun (_jackfowler_/Instagram)

Before the incident, Jack took to his social media page to describe his Qatar flight as 'the most comfortable, relaxing and cleanest flight' he'd ever been on.

The star then said he told the air host at the start of the flight that he is extremely allergic to nuts and the member of staff 'made a note and said it wouldn't be a problem'.

Jack said that after selecting his meals he was then served 'pastries with nuts in it.'

"Thankfully, I spotted them and didn't eat. And when notifying my host about it he was extremely sorry," he explained.

"But this is the kind of thing that could have gone soooo bad," he added. "Me eating a nut in the air despite me taking an epipen would have caused me to have a serious shock and quite possibly die.

Jack said he'd been served pastries but realised their were nuts in them and didn't eat (_jackfowler_/Instagram)

"Couldn't make it up!' Jack said he was then given an ice cream containing nuts - which he ate and suffered a reaction to (_jackfowler_/Instagram)

"We would have had to divert and land in order for me to be treated in time.

"Moral of the story is: If you're a flight attendant reading this MAKE SURE you have a system that works and prevents this type of thing from happening," warned Jack.

He then told his fellow allergy sufferers to not be afraid to speak up or feel like a 'nuisance' for having dietary requirements.

Jack then returned to Instagram after posting his Story to say that his air host had given him nuts again - and this time he'd eaten the dish.

"Couldn't make it up!" said the star. "There was crushed pistachio nut under my icecream? I ate it. Immediately knew something was wrong and spat it out but also felt my throat close up and tongue swell."

He continued: "The pilot had contacted different countries to divert to get me treated.

"Luckily because I reacted quickkk we didn't need to... but I cannot begin to tell you scary that was.

"I told you five times I'm allergic. You gave me nuts twice. I literally could've died. The next person might not be so lucky.

"Absolute Shambles Qatar Airways," said the star before tagging the company in his post

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