Tributes have flooded in for Ingrid Dale
(Picture: Facebook)Friends have paid tribute to a “beautiful, vibrant” British woman who died after being stung by a wasp in a restaurant in Spain.
Ingrid Dale, 67, is said to have gone into anaphylactic shock in front of friends at the bar in the Costa Blanca town of Moraira half an hour north of Benidorm.
She died in an ambulance outside the Hill Top Sports Bar & Grill, just after 2pm on Monday, after going into cardiac arrest before she could be taken to hospital.
On Wednesday friends and well-wishers spoke of their heartbreak over widowed Ms Dale’s death as it emerged she was at a lunch to help raise funds for Ukrainian families when the tragedy occurred.
The expat, originally from Dereham in Norfolk, was less than one month away from her 68th birthday.
Fitness instructor Kimberley Marie Harrison revealed the Zumba class in Moraira Ingrid would normally have been at on Wednesday would be held in her memory.
She said in a poignant tribute: “A very special lady left us yesterday so unexpectedly, so shockingly.
“As the strong, stoic, get on with it type of woman she was, she spent her last morning on this planet dancing Zumba with lovely people, having coffee in the sunshine with friends, studying Spanish with me, and then took herself off to a lunch to help raise funds for Ukrainian families.
“The random acts of fate resulted in her being stung by a wasp which ultimately, due to an extreme reaction, she did not survive.”
Describing her as a pet lover who was devoted to her family including her grandchildren and “lived life to the full”, she added in a social media message posted along footage of Ingrid enjoying her Zumba class the morning of the day she died.
She said: “I send my heartfelt condolences to her family. What a huge loss. Know she was having fun to the very last. Huge hugs to all those who have been deeply shocked and affected by this.
“Wednesday morning’s Zumba class is in memory of Ingrid.
“We will do it her way, in bright colours and with smiles on our faces as much as possible to celebrate a life really lived.
“The playlist will be full of her favourites. We’ll dance for you Ingrid. In some of your favourite words, ‘you’ve just got to get on with it haven’t you, life’s too short’.
“We’ll do that, in your memory, celebrating you precious.”
Gale Turp responded by saying: “What a wonderful tribute Kimberley. We have lost one special lady. So dance your socks off ladies for our wonderful friend.”
Expat Debra Soraya Williams wrote: “It’s just not going to be the same paddling out to sea without Ingrid.
“She was always game. I loved her attitude and zest for life.”
Philip Wendy wrote on social media: “She was a beautiful person. She will truly be missed.”
Police and paramedics rushed to the British-run bar-restaurant where Monday afternoon’s tragedy occurred but confirmed emergency responders were unable to save the British expat.
A spokesman for a regional government-run emergency coordination centre said: “The alarm was raised around 2pm local time on Monday. The woman who died was on a terrace of the bar-restaurant where the tragedy occurred.
“She was stung and suffered a severe reaction to the venom in the sting. She went into anaphylactic shock and died at the scene.”
A spokesman for the Civil Guard said: “Officers attended the restaurant where the incident occurred after a British woman aged 67 was stung by a wasp.
“She was being assisted by emergency medical responders on the restaurant terrace when they arrived.
“She was subsequently transferred to an ambulance where she died after going into cardiac arrest.
“A doctor certified her dead around 3pm local time on Monday.”
The results of the autopsy, believed to have been carried out on Tuesday, are not expected to be made public as is customary in Spain.
The most severe reactions to wasp stings are referred to as anaphylaxis. It occurs when your body goes into shock in response to wasp venom. A source close to the ongoing investigation into Ms Dale’s death, which is now being coordinated by a local court as part of routine procedure, said ahead of the post-mortem: “It appears she went into anaphylactic shock but it will be up to a forensic expert during an autopsy to confirm this.”
A Sunday cyclist died in a freak accident in Spain last April after swallowing a bee while out on a bike ride with friends.
Local reports at the time said the 59-year-old went into cardiac arrest after the insect stung him in the throat and he suffered an allergic reaction to the poison in the sting.
He was on the CV-505 running between the towns of Algamesi and Albalat, around an hour’s drive north of Moraira, in the neighbouring province of Valencia.
In September 2020 a 69-year-old Spaniard named as Antonio Rodriguez Loureiro died after being attacked by Asian hornets, which are larger than common wasps and carry more venom.
He was clearing a hillside with a tractor in A Laracha in the Galician province of La Coruna in north-west Spain. His family raised the alarm when he failed to return home.
