Crowd swept her away, says friend of girl killed in nightclub crush

Trampled: victim Nabila Nanfuka, left, with her best friend Birungi Nakiwala
12 April 2012

The best friend of a London woman crushed to death at a nightclub told today of the last time she saw her before the student disappeared under a sea of people.

Nabila Nanfuka, 22, of Neasden, was knocked down and trampled at the foot of steep stairs near the exit after a fire alarm went off. Fellow student Laurene-Danielle Jackson, 19, of Wembley, died in hospital three weeks later.

Today Birungi Nakiwala said she was devastated by the death of her friend Ms Nanfuka. She has organised a memorial event of music, dance, prayer and tributes for family and friends tonight.

"The only thing that helped me cope was planning this memorial," she said. "Otherwise I'd have been alone with my thoughts. I've just started sleeping."

Reliving the tragic night, Ms Nakiwala told of their excitement at attending the Wickedest Wickedest event at Lava Ignite in Northampton, the town where Ms Nanfuka studied leisure and tourism. Some of the five-strong group of London school friends had travelled from their universities and got ready at Ms Nanfuka's Northampton house.

Ms Nakiwala, 22, said that on arriving at the club they saw hundreds of people squeezing to get in. "We were shocked at how busy it was," she said. "When we got inside, the dance area was packed. It was just a sea of heads."

The five women stayed in a small room until deciding to leave at about 3.30am. The friends left together but the crowd's weight prised them apart. Then someone let off fire alarms, which added to the panic.

Ms Nakiwala pushed with her hands to create a space in front of her. She said: "The last time I saw Nabila she was in front of me, then the crowd moved her away. I couldn't see where anyone was. I had to close my eyes and breathe so I didn't have a panic attack.

"As we came down the stairs everyone seemed to be falling at the bottom. It was a domino effect. We knew that when we got to the bottom of the stairs we were going to fall over. I fell with my arms stretched out and luckily there were two guys pulling people out."

Two of Ms Nakiwala's friends were also crushed but escaped and searched for Ms Nanfuka - but were told she was in an ambulance. Her cause of death was later given as "traumatic crush asphyxiation". About 600 mourners attended her funeral.

Tonight's invitation event in Finchley is a celebration of the life of the "happy girl" for those who missed the service. There will be dancers from Uganda, where Ms Nanfuka was born.
Her friends blame "stupidity and lack of safety measures" at the club for her death on October 19.
Eight days after the tragedy, club owner Luminar collapsed under debt and will go into administration. The club is closed while police investigate.

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