Payout for Stress for Air Crash Witness

A schoolgirl who witnessed a stricken plane heading towards her house is to receive £27,500 in compensation for post-traumatic stress. The  Korean Airlines Boeing 747 crashed just a few minutes after it had taken off from Stansted in December 1999, coming down close to Great Hallingbury in Essex . At the time, Remy Spruce, now 14, was in the kitchen of her family home with her mother and they saw the jet heading directly for their house. Terrified, they hid under the kitchen table. The aircraft missed the house but crashed close by.

In the High Court, Mr Justice Mackay recognised that Remy had suffered significant psychological injury. The court heard how she had developed post-traumatic stress disorder for which she had received counselling, as a result of which her condition was said to be much improved. However, the family have since moved away from their much-loved former home to escape the memory of the crash. The judge confirmed the award of £27,500 against the Korean Airlines company.

The award of compensation is one in a series of cases to be brought by villagers from Great Hallingbury.