London Bridge attack: Hero nurse stabbed to death as she tried to help another victim, inquest hears
Boyfriend tells court he is 'still in awe of her bravery'
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Your support makes all the difference.An Australian nurse was stabbed to death by terrorists after she ran to help another victim of the London Bridge attack, an inquest has heard.
Relatives of 28-year-old Kirsty Boden said they were "in awe of her bravery" in the June 2017 atrocity, when she was one of eight people killed.
The Old Bailey heard she was inside a restaurant with friends when she heard what she believed to be an accidental car crash, and went to investigate.
But Ms Boden was unwittingly walking into the path of three Isis-inspired terrorists, who had mowed down pedestrians on London Bridge before crashing their van and launching a knife rampage.
The court was shown CCTV of Ms Boden motioning to her friends to stay back before seeing victim Alexandre Pigeard bleeding on the ground.
The nurse bent down to help when she was subjected to a sustained attack, running into an alleyway before collapsing and dying of her injuries.
Her British partner, James Hodder, told the court: "Her actions on that night didn't surprise anyone who knew her. To Kirsty it would not have seemed brave.
“She loved people and loved her life helping others. To Kirsty, her actions that night would have been an extension of how she lived her life. We are so unspeakably proud of her.”
At the time she was stabbed to death, Ms Boden was working as a senior staff nurse at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital in central London.
Her father, Ken Boden, said: "We miss Kirsty every second of the day. There is a hole in our hearts that will never heal."
The other victims killed were Christine Archibald, 30, Xavier Thomas, 45, Mr Pigeard, 26, Sara Zelenak, 21, Sebastien Belanger, 36, James McMullan, 32, and Ignacio Echeverria, 39.
A total of 48 other people were seriously injured in what chief coroner Mark Lucraft called 10 minutes of “high and terrible drama”.
Spanish financial crime analyst Mr Echeverria hit the terrorists with a skateboard to save a woman's life before he was stabbed to death, the court heard.
The man Ms Boden tried to help, Mr Pigeard, was murdered while “rushing to see if he could help” victims of what he believed to be an accidental crash.
French chef Sebastien Belanger, 36, had been drinking at Boro Bistro and was cornered by all three of the attackers but “bravely fought back” before being stabbed to death.
Another Frenchman, 45-year-old Xavier Thomas, became the first victim of the attack when he was struck by the terrorists' van and thrown into the River Thames.
The father-of-two was walking with his girlfriend Christine Delcros on the first day of their holiday in London, and called his teenage son seconds before being killed.
The van repeatedly mounted the pavement on London Bridge, killing the second victim as she walked alongside her fiance.
The court heard that Canadian social worker Christine Archibald, 30, had kissed her husband-to-be and told him “I love you” moments before being killed.
Her fiance, Tyler Ferguson, said they were “very much looking forward” to spending the rest of their lives together and starting a family.
Australian au pair Sara Zelenak was on a ”trip of a lifetime“ when she was knifed to death while on a night out with a friend nearby, her family said.
And dual British-Filipino national James McMullan, 32, had been celebrating getting financial backing for his online education company when he was murdered.
The 32-year-old been watching the football match with friends in The Barrowboy and Banker pub when he went outside for a cigarette and was caught in the attack.
Their attackers, Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, were shot dead by police at the scene.
The court heard that the terrorists had taped 12ins ceramic kitchen knives to their wrists and were wearing fake suicide vests.
Their deaths will be examined before a jury, in separate inquests coming after an estimated eight weeks of hearings for their victims.
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The court has risen for a short break and the inquests will resume shortly
The mother of victim Sara Zelenak, 21, is now speaking to the court
Julie Wallace says she was her second daughter and a "loving little sister" to her brother Scott. After the parents divorced she became a "working single mum" before marrying Mark Wallace, Sara's stepfather
Ms Wallace says her daughter was qualified in snow skiing and avalanche survival but never wanted to go to university and worked in pubs before in floristry
She operated a crane truck with her stepfather and then decided to "plan the trip of a lifetime" with the money she earned
Ms Wallace says her daughter left for the UK in March 2017 and met her close friend, who was already loving there
Sara worked as an au pair and "settled into London life", her mother said. They were planning to meet up in Paris
"Sars was the happiest she had ever been," her mother says. "That was until 3 June 2017."
She was meant to be working but got the night off at the last minute. Her friends were supposed to go to a rooftop bar but couldn't find it, then Soho, but then decided on Borough Market
At 10pm, Sara got a call from a friend and walked out of a bar "into a terrorist attack and was stabbed to death"
Ms Wallace says the terror attack didn't feel real, adding "we didn't believe it"
"Since that fateful day, my husband and I have dedicated our lives to helping those who have suffered sudden violent deaths" and founded a charity in Sara's name to help people suffering "horrific grief"
In June, the family are travelling from London Bridge to Paris to raise money to buy a property to help families in Australia
"There isn't any help around and families fall down, they suicide, they divorce, they get addicted to drugs and alcohol," Ms Wallace said, saying people from around the world are contacting the charity. "I now devote my whole life to the cause, it heals me because I can help others."
Julian, the brother of Sebastien Belanger, 36, is now reading a tribute to the court in French
It will be followed in English by the family's lawyer reading a tribute
Gareth Patterson QC, who is representing Mr Belanger's family, is reading a tribute from his mother
"He was full of mischief .. he did not like school very much," she said, describing how he found his passion in cooking and trained as a chef.
He worked in famous restaurants in France and then in Corsica and moved to London in 2009 to join friends and worked at the Coq d'Argent
"I do not forgive what they did to him, they mutilated and killed him," his mother says
A joint letter from his family describes Mr Belanger's joie de vivre and "angelic face and caring disposition"
The family say Sebastien was a "breath of fresh air" who loved football and supported teams in both France and England
"His eyes were full of dreams," the family said. "Sebastien we will never forget you, there is always a place, a word, an image that reminds us you are still with us ... we miss you a lot and you are always, forever, present in our hearts."
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