A mum choked to death after taking part in a marshmallow-eating contest at a fundraiser, a hearing was told.
Natalie Buss, 37, was called up by the DJ to see who could ‘fit the most marshmallows into their mouths’ at the rugby club event near Pontypridd,South Wales.
The accountant swallowed handfuls of the pink and white marshmallows lined up on the podium – but collapsed after leaving the stage.
As they waited for paramedics to arrive, members of the crowd, including an off-duty nurse, tried to save her life, and someone ran to fetch a defibrillator from a nearby school.
But Ms Buss – a mum of two – choked to death, leaving those around her shocked, with many in tears, the pre-inquest hearing was told.
The event was held at Beddau RFC, in the village of Beddau, in October last year to raise money for the under 10s rugby team, which Ms Buss’s son was part of.
The club hired popular entertainer Christopher Gibbons, 34, to host the fundraiser.
Mr Gibbons – known as ‘Roly-Poly’ – has hosted hundreds of parties as a DJ and entertainer for more than 15 years and was described as an ‘established entertainer’ at the hearing, held at Pontypridd Coroners’ Court.
During this particular event, Ms Buss, who lived in nearby Church Village, won a bingo game where she was called up for the marshmallow contest.
Contestants were given a time limit of 60 seconds to see how many marshmallows they could swallow – cheered on by family and friends in the clubhouse.
Since the tragedy, Mr Gibbons has ‘decided to stop introducing the game to people’, the hearing was told.
He has been interviewed by police and will give evidence to a full jury at an inquest to be held at a later date.
Coroner Gavin Knox told the hearing the scope of the inquest would ‘focus on risk assessment and risk mitigation relating to the game’.
He said it would assess what happened while she played the game as well as a cause of death – and the ‘appropriateness’ of the entertainment provided at the club.
Mr Knox told the hearing he would feel ‘mandated to sit with a jury’ for the inquest, which is likely to be heard next year.
He said he must sit with a jury if he had reason to suspect Mrs Buss’s death could have resulted from a ‘notifiable accident’.
Inquests with a jury are often called for when someone’s death occurs in circumstances which could be considered ‘suspicious, contentious, or have wider ramifications for the public’.
Ms Buss’s death has been reported to the Health and Safety Executive for investigation.
Mr Knox told her family that a full inquest would probably not happen for at least six months due to a backlog in jury inquests, partly as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The inquest will hear from Ms Buss’s husband Elliott Buss, Mr Gibbons, two paramedics who attended and her GP Dr Kate Spencer.
Not long after her death, local Labour MP Alex Davies-Jones said: ‘My heart goes out to all those affected and my thoughts are with their family and friends.
‘If there is anything I can do to help anyone who might be impacted, please get in touch.’
Meanwhile, Beddau RFC said the club and community were ‘heartbroken’.
In a statement, it said: ‘Everybody associated with Beddau RFC and within the community are nothing less than devastated at the weekend’s tragic accident and we struggle to comprehend the sense of loss people are feeling.
‘This said, we must acknowledge that our loss pales into insignificance in comparison to the loss of a lady who was a wonderful wife, mother and daughter to what was an absolutely tragic turn of events.
‘As a club we send out our sincerest, heartfelt condolences to all the family, the close friends and to all those that this has so badly impacted – you are all in our thoughts today.’
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