Woman, 24, dies four days after marriage proposal when she uses wrong spoon to stir cup of tea

A 24-year-old has died just days after getting engaged after she had a fatal reaction to using the wrong spoon to stir her tea.

Jess Prinsloo was travelling with her partner Craig McKinnon, 24 from Salisbury, in South Africa when Craig proposed at renowned beauty spot God’s Window viewpoint in Mpumalanga.

Four days after she said yes to Craig’s proposal, Jess sadly passed away.

Craig said: “Lots of her family live in South Africa and she hadn’t been back in six years, so I knew there was no better place to propose.

“My voice cracked as I got down on one knee and asked, ‘Will you marry me?’ She said, ‘Oh my God’ and started crying before she said yes.

“The look on her face… it meant everything.”

Craig McKinnon and his fiancée Jess Prinsloo
Facebook / Jess Prinsloo

After celebrating their new engagement, the couple travelled to Jess’s mum’s home in Johannesburg, where she came into contact with dairy.

She had a fatal reaction where her throat closed up, and died in hospital on New Year’s Eve.

Speaking to the Mirror, Craig said: “When Jess died, a part of me died too – but there is no one to blame for her passing away.

“But, God, she’d had several near-misses.”

He added: “Jess was sitting on the toilet lid, really struggling to breathe. She had used an EpiPen, but it wasn’t having the effect it normally has.”

Jess had struggled with the allergic reactions, who had been allergic to dairy since she was nine months old.

Craig is now faced with medical bills of £3,700, and coroner fees of £1,200.

A GoFundMe page was setup by both families to help with costs of Jess’ funeral.

Craig wants to know help educate people about the dangers of allergies.

He said: “It is something people cannot control and it can kill them.

“I just want people to listen and understand how serious this is.”

To find out more visit Allergy UK at allergyuk.org