The dad of a popular teenager who suffered a deadly allergic reaction fears he will never get closure over his son’s tragic death.
Nicholas Kelly, who had a nut allergy, died in the aftermath of a meal from his local takeaway.
But inquiries have failed to establish what triggered the anaphylactic shock that caused him to collapse.
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Speaking after an inquest into the death of his 16-year-old son, Chris Kelly told the ECHO: “I just don’t know what caused his death. I’m just speechless.
“I want justice, I want to know what killed him, what the actual reason was. But I am not going to find out now.”
The inquest heard a meal of doner meat and mayonnaise had been requested for Nick from Uno Pizzas on Chapel Street, Prescot.
The much-loved teen ate there up to three times a week and had never had an issue with that order.
His dad said he was sensitive to his nut allergy and careful about what he ate as a result.
Staff at the venue said Nick was given his usual order before walking home on the night of March 7, 2020.
But when he came home he collapsed after, according to Mr Kelly, claiming the “wrong sauce” had been placed on his meal.
The video games enthusiast was rushed to hospital but, despite desperate efforts to save him, died four days later.
His death sparked tributes from friends and family, and on Wednesday his dad recalled: “He was a brilliant lad. Everyone loved him. He would do anything for anyone. Nick was my best mate. It has ripped me apart.”
At the inquest, held at Bootle Town Hall, Mr Kelly questioned whether Tahini sauce could have been used on his meal instead of mayonnaise.
The sauce contains sesame - which Mr Kelly said Nick had previously suffered a reaction to - and there was a bottle present in the takeaway.
But the dad was told there was no direct evidence to show what exactly had caused the rapid deterioration in his son’s health.
Pathologist Chris Johnson said Nick had died as a result of multiple organ failure due to anaphylactic shock - a severe allergic reaction.
Dr Johnson said toxicology tests would not look for a substance such as sesame and that he understood “insufficient” blood had been available to conduct more specific research.
Co-factors could have included Nick’s asthma or cannabis, a trace of which was said to have been present in his system, though senior coroner Julie Goulding said it was impossible to say whether either contributed to the tragedy.
An Environmental Health investigation tested everything in the restaurant that should not have contained nuts or sesame - including samples of the doner meat and the mayonnaise.
They found no traces of either ingredient in any product that should not have contained them.
This led Ms Goulding to conclude: “On the evidence available it is not possible to identify the direct cause of the anaphylaxis.”
Recording a narrative verdict, Ms Goulding added Nick “tended to have the same meal, doner kebab and mayonnaise, which is what he is said to have had on this occasion” and that it would be “speculation” to attempt to identify what triggered the reaction based on the information provided.
She concluded Nick’s cause of death as multiple organ failure and anaphylaxis.
Following the hearing, Mr Kelly said: “I just don’t know what to do, what to say, I’m gobsmacked, heartbroken - I’m not going to get proper closure for what happened to Nick."
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