Princess Diana: The last unknown moments before she died in Paris

The firefighter who was at the scene of the accident, the doctor who provided first aid and the Catholic priest who was called to her side share their stories

“Oh my God. What happened? ” These were the last words of Princess Diana before she died at the side of her lover Dodi Al Faged , as described by a French firefighter who had rushed to the scene of the accident that occurred on August 31, 1997.

On July 1, if Princess Diana were alive today, 60 candles would go out. But the British newspaper “Daily Mail”, which has spoken to critical witnesses who were next to her on the day she lost the battle with life, reveals shocking details.

They saw the light of day just 24 hours before the inauguration of the statue in honor of the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry , who died in a car accident while being chased by a paparazzi at the age of 36 in August 1997 .

A few days ago, Prince Harry revealed to TV presenter Oprah Winfrey that he resorted to alcohol and drugs to deal with his mother’s death. According to the controversial article in the British newspaper, shortly before Princess Diana passed away, the following happened:

Sunday, August 31, 1997

Midnight in Paris: Brigadier General Charles Ritz, military ombudsman of the British embassy, ​​walks outside the Ritz Hotel, seeing a crowd of photographers and other citizens at the entrance of the hotel, in the heart of the “city of light”. The brigadier Rich , is the first British official in the city informed of the presence of “Lady Di” in the region. He would later say to authorities that he intended to inform his ambassador of her presence, but not before dawn.

Diana butler Paul Barel will state that, while Diana was obliged to inform the Secretary of the Interior when she was traveling abroad, in practice she did so only for official visits. This ride with Dodi was unofficial.

After their dinner at the Ritz Hotel , Dodi “leaves” the Imperial Suite and informs his two British bodyguards, Trevor Reese Jones and Keys Wingfield that there has been a change of plan : The couple will not leave the front entrance of the “Ritz” hotel to return to his mansion with the cars used earlier in the afternoon, nor with the company of his two bodyguards and the dedicated chauffeur.

Instead, Dodi tells them, he and Diana will leave the back door with Ritz Deputy Chief of Security Henry Paul driving another Mercedes. The bodyguards will go out and act as bait , while the couple and butler Paul Baller will try to escape from the photographers. The two bodyguards are afraid of the “bad plan”. There is an “intense discussion” during which Dodi tells his men: “It’s okay with Mohamed Al Fajd, it’s okay with my father.”

They finally agreed. Reese Jones will go with the couple and Paul. The bodyguards are not happy with that, but Dodi’s words are definitive. The couple leaves the “Imperial” suite and, along with Paul and Reese Jones, go downstairs in the elevator, which is for staff only. Parked outside – a black Mercedes S280 awaits them. Reese Jones is sitting in the front passenger seat. Diana and Dodi are sitting in the back seat with Paul Barrell driving. No one is wearing a seat belt. They are a few minutes away from the tragedy.

The “pursuit”

Mercedes does not escape the paparazzi who manage to have one of the latest photos of Diana. Reese Jones looks anxious, Paul seems to have lost them. According to an eyewitness, as he gets into the car, Paul Barrell tells the photographers: “Do not try to follow us. In any case, you will not catch us. 

Paul develops dizzying speed with the paparazzi chasing the black limousine as he tries to escape. The car travels along the banks of the Seine to the Pont de l’Alma underpass. As it enters the underpass entrance, Mercedes accelerates while a white Fiat Uno moves in the other direction . Paul loses control and the two-tonne car crashes into the 13th pillar of the underpass. The vehicle starts circling in the opposite direction. Paul and Dodi are killed. Reese Jones and Diana are seriously injured.

Doctor’s testimony

Seconds later, Dr.   Frederic Melier, driven by a Peugeot, enters the Alma tunnel from the opposite direction. Mark’s doctor and lover were returning home from a birthday party. “They left early because the French doctor had to be in the hospital early. I saw some smoke in the tunnel and drove later and
later I saw the Mercedes,” Melier told the Mail. “The smoke was coming out of the car engine, which was almost cut in two. “There was no one around the wreckage . “

He stops his car.“Inside the Mercedes, two men were apparently dead and two were seriously injured, but they were still alive. So I did a very quick evaluation. “Then I went back to my car to get all the medical equipment I had … I went back to the Mercedes and tried to help the young woman .” “I sat on the floor with my back to her and discovered that she was a very beautiful woman and had no serious injuries on her face. She was not bleeding then but she was almost unconscious and could hardly breathe. So my goal was to help her breathe easier. It was a very difficult situation for me. I was alone, I did not have the proper equipment. “It looked good in the first minutes, but during such an accident, one always suspects serious internal injuries,” he claims.

Dr. Melier is calling for first aid from his mobile phone, having already installed a respirator in Diana. Then he returns to work. He has no idea that the injured woman who was trying to help is Diana, Princess of Wales. “The only thing that matters is that her pulse is weak and fast. The flashes from the camerasare behind him.

“Often people take pictures in an accident because they are curious,” he says. “But at that time there were many people taking pictures, which surprised me but not stopped to do my job” . He tries to comfort Diana in French . He does not know that she is a stranger. Then someone behind him says that the young woman speaks English.
“So I started talking to her in English, saying that I was a doctor and that the ambulance was on its way and everything would be fine. “This is what you say to make a patient feel comfortable.”

The 

chief firefighter The first uniformed police officer arrives at the scene of the accident. Sebastian Dorzi immediately recognizes the princess. Chief Firefighter Xavier Gourmellonarrives at the spot with two vehicles and a “Marlar” ambulance.
He already knows it will be something serious because a full medical team has been dispatched to the spot. He sees Trevor Reese Jones. “He was very upset, trying to turn around, muttering something in English. “I could not understand him,” he told the Mail newspaper.

The firefighter also sees Dr. Melier dealing with Diana who is still moving her body and communicating. Gourmelon’s team pulls Dodi out of the car and tries to bring him back to life.

“As soon as he left, I stayed with the woman,” he says.“She spoke in English and said, ‘My God, what happened?’ I understood that, so I tried to calm her down. I held her hand. Then others took over. “It all happened in two or three minutes.”

His colleague from the Fire Brigade , Philippe Boyer, puts a collar around her neck and a new respirator. He then covers it with an isothermal blanket. Her breathing is normal, her pulse “strong enough”.
The first ambulance arrives and I inform Dr. Jean-Mar Martino, who specializes in the treatment of patients admitted to the ICU for the condition of the injured. “I gave him my appreciation and got back in my car,” recalls Dr. Melier. «And so I left the scene of the accident without knowing who took the treatment “.
Together with his lover, Mark returns home, where he will start washing his stained white suit. But he holds the respirator he had …

Suddenly, Diana ‘s pressure starts to drop sharply while she is in the ambulance. Martino gives her another dopamine but she is afraid that the symptoms show internal damage. Now they have to take her to the hospital urgently. The question is in which hospital. The princess is finally served at the Pitié-Salpêtrière in the 13th arrondissement with the hospital on foot.

When Diana was transported by ambulance to the hospital, the British ambassador, Sir Michael Jay, was informed. As the ambulance approaches the hospital, Diana’s pressure drops again. Martino orders the driver to stop, while he gives her dopamine again. Some are preparing for the worst .

The priest’s testimony

In his apartment, near the hospital, the Catholic priest Yves Marie Closar Bosoue , who volunteered for his services at the weekend, wakes up from the phone. He is the janitor of the hospital. “He told me, ‘Can you give me the address of one of your Anglican colleagues?’ “”, Remembers the priest. So I said I didn’t have a name and I added, ‘You have to have the number of an English priest.’ But they told me: “He does not answer”. And I said, “I’m sorry, I don’t know,” and hung up.

The priest’s phone rings again. He called me again and asked, “Can you take the place of the Anglican priest?” I said, “Yes, but why?” He said, “Look, I can’t tell you.” So I said, “Funny you can’t say that, because if I’re going to see a person at two in the morning, I’ll love to know who they are.”

The priest begins to believe that the one who called him may be drunk. She tells him: “If you can not give me the name or the word at 2 in the morning you are joking me”. So he said to me: “Well, I will tell you then. “She is the Princess of Wales.”

The priest believes that the janitor is indeed under the influence of alcoholand hangs up “immediately”. Even so, owning one is still beyond the reach of the average person. He can not sleep. The ambulance finally arrives at the hospital. The princess is in a state of traumatic shock. Cardio-thoracic surgeon on duty, Professor Bruno Rio, is present and gives her two x-rays. They show that he is bleeding internally . Diana starts receiving treatment, but the teacher is pessimistic.

The priest’s phone rings again. ” Father, I’m very sorry, but what I told you is true ,” the doorman says angrily. “The British ambassador is expected. This is a very serious medical condition. The priest gets out of bed and gets dressed. ” The Catholic priest was by her side at the hospital where Princess Diana died.
The priest is now alone with Diana. ” All these photos, the lovers … For a woman who is the mother of a future king … she was not behaving well. “I did not like her, ” he admits.

But she had read her interview with Le Monde three days earlier and had changed her mind. ” There was a page explaining that he did very positive things. And I thought, “Well … she’s a good woman after all.” She thinks of the two young princes, her sons . “They should wake them up and tell them ‘it’s over’ … It’s the worst thing.”
Then he began to pray for Diana’s soul.