THE family of an East Grinstead schoolboy who died after suffering an allergic reaction from eating spaghetti while on holiday in Italy has been awarded £288,000 of compensation.

Cameron Wahid, seven, suffered a severe anaphylactic shock from eating pasta made with milk at a restaurant in Ravello on the Amalfi Coast in 2015.

Restaurant staff were warned about the boy’s severe cheese and milk allergies, but the waitress did not understand their request and assured them it was safe.

Cameron collapsed after eating the meal in front of his mother Cassandra, 43, father Rizwan, 43, and little brother Aidan, before suffering a cardiac arrest. His mother, a nurse, managed to give her son an EpiPen, but the schoolboy died in hospital three days later on October 30.

The parents described the death of their son as the “worst day of their lives” and went on to fight a lengthy legal battle against the La Margherita Villa Giuseppina restaurant.

In September 2019, waitress Ester Di Lascio was found guilty of culpable manslaughter by an Italian court in Salerno and given a two-year suspended jail sentence.

Di Lascio was found to have not properly highlighted the possible allergic reactions caused by ingredients in dishes on the restaurant’s menu.

The pasta Cameron ate was served with a tomato sauce that had been prepared with milk by chef Luigi Cioffi, who was later cleared of any wrongdoing.

The family from East Grinstead in West Sussex were awarded a sum of around £288,000 compensation by the court.

The Argus: Cameron Wahid died in October 2015Cameron Wahid died in October 2015

Mr Wahid said his son’s death was avoidable and called for lessons to be learnt and awareness of the seriousness of allergies.

“To see him going into anaphylactic shock and suffering like that was undoubtedly the worst experience of our lives,” he said. “He was such a lovely little boy, and always brightened up our days.

“We feel his death was avoidable and we are still struggling to come to terms with him not being here anymore.

“Cameron’s allergy had always been severe, but we were so careful with him and scrupulous with what he ate.”

The Argus: Andrey Belenko's photograph of Salerno Andrey Belenko's photograph of Salerno

Since his son’s passing, Mr Wahid has started working as an ambassador with Allergy UK - the UK’s leading charity providing support to people with allergies.

“We know nothing will bring him back, but we want to help stop others from suffering the pain we continue to feel,” he said. “People need to know how serious allergies can be.

“For us, everything has been about using the criminal trial process in Italy to ensure that justice was obtained for Cameron, which we have done, as well as to establish facts and ensure lessons are learned so that others don’t have to suffer like we have.”

The family also received an undisclosed sum of money to help access specialist support and overcome their ordeal.

Specialist international serious injury lawyer Daniel Matchett, who represented the family, said the allergic reaction “could and should have been prevented”.

“Cassandra and Riz were always very careful with controlling Cameron’s allergies, and losing him has had such a devastating impact on them,” he said. “While they cannot turn back the clock and change what happened, Cassandra and Riz want to make people aware that allergies are potentially life-threatening to help ensure that no others go through what they have.”