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 because of technical problems with a live feed of proceedings in Australia.
The hearing has resumed. Mr Hodder says: "Without Kirsty in our lives, at times it feels impossible to go on ... our wounds will never fully heal."
He adds: "Life now feels very uncertain but wherever we go, we will take the memory of Kirsty with us."
Ken Boden, Kirsty's father, is now speaking
"We miss Kirsty every second of every day," he says. "We are so proud of our beautiful, adventurous, brave and kind daughter."
A tribute to Spanish victim Ignacio Echeverria, 39, is being read to the court by the counsel to the inquests, on behalf of his family.
It says he had lived in London for more than four years and found a "challenging job" and good friends
"In his last days in London, he was surrounded by a diverse group of friends," the tribute says, saying he was a keen skateboarder
The tribute said that on the day he was killed, he had spent a day skateboarding with friends in different parts of London. He had dinner plans at his sister's home but delayed it because he was having a good time
Ignacio was born in Spain and was the eldest of five siblings
Ignacio's family say he was Catholic and worshipped every week, while spreading his faith and helping young people he met through skateboarding
He studied for a masters' in law in France and went into the banking sector, and loved his job in London
His parents accepted the George Medal bravery award on his behalf in October, in recognition of his efforts to save a woman who was being attacked by the terrorists. He struck two of the attackers with his skateboard before they stabbed him to death
A counterterror police officer has taken the witness stand, Det Supt Rebecca Riggs, to give evidence from the investigation into the attack
Mr Hough QC, counsel to the inquets, says it was a warm evening and at the time of the attack shortly after 10pm the area was busy. The Champions League final had been shown earlier in the night
D/Supt Riggs says Khuram Butt was born in Pakistan but lived in London for most of his life. On the night of the attack he was wearing a long-sleeved red top and Arsenal shirt underneath, and camoflage trousers
Rachid Redouane was born in Morocco and lived in London. He was wearing blue jeans, navy and white striped top and trainers.
Youssef Zaghba was born in Morocco and lived in London. He was wearing a black zip-up hoodie and black trousers
D/Supt Riggs says the white van used in the attack was a Renault. The court is being shown a photograph of the van after the attack, with damage to the front and Hertz hire markings visible
The officer said each attacker was carrying a 12ins pink ceramic kitchen knife, secured with duck tape to their wrists. The court is being shown photographs of the knives after they were taken from the attackers' bodies
D/Supt Riggs said each attacker was wearing "mock explosive belts", which are being shown to the court in photographs. It is a belt with bottles made to look like an IED
D/Supt Riggs says that atack started at 22:06.51 as the van mounted the east pavement on London Bridge while travelling south. Two pedestrians were killed on the bridge
She says the van then crashed into railings on the opposite side of the road by a pub
"The attackers then got out of the van on foot and randomly started attacking members of the public, stabbing them with knives"
D/Supt Riggs says the first knife attacks happened in Green Dragon court outside Boro Bistro. That's where five of the victims were killed
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