Nurse's death sparks anger in Britain at royal prank

The London hospital that treated Prince William's pregnant wife Catherine and where a nurse was found dead after being hoaxed by an Australian radio show on Saturday wrote to the station condemning the "truly appalling" stunt. Britain reacted with horror at the death of mother-of-two Jacintha Saldanha, 46, in a presumed suicide. Her death triggered a wave of anger online directed at the two Australian radio hosts behind the hoax who have been pulled off the air. Floral tributes to nurse Saldanha were placed outside the accommodation block where her body was discovered on Friday. Media reports called her death a suspected suicide although police, ahead of a post-mortem examination next week, said it remained unexplained. There was no receptionist on duty at 5:30am on Tuesday when presenters from Sydney's 2Day FM rang King Edward VII's Hospital, impersonating Queen Elizabeth II and William's father Prince Charles. Saldanha answered the call before passing it onto a colleague who divulged details of the Duchess of Cambridge's recovery from acute morning sickness. Hospital chairman Lord Simon Glenarthur wrote to Max Moore-Wilton, the chairman of broadcasting group Southern Cross Austereo, to protest "in the strongest possible terms" about the hoax. "It was extremely foolish of your presenters even to consider trying to lie their way through to one of our patients, let alone actually make the call," he wrote. "Then to discover that, not only had this happened, but that the call had been pre-recorded and the decision to transmit approved by your station's management, was truly appalling. "The immediate consequence of these premeditated and ill-considered actions was the humiliation of two dedicated and caring nurses who were simply doing their job tending to their patients. "The longer-term consequence has been reported around the world and is, frankly, tragic beyond words. "I appreciate that you cannot undo the damage which has been done but I would urge you to take steps to ensure that such an incident could never be repeated." At the family home in Bristol, southwest England, relatives and friends rallied round to comfort Saldanha's partner and the couple's teenage son and daughter, aged 14 and 16. Reports said the family moved from India around a decade ago. A friend at the address said the family was "very, very shocked and unhappy at the tragedy".  Neighbour Mary Atwell, 56, said: "She was a lovely, lovely person who always spoke to you when you saw her. "You could always see that she was very dedicated to her job. "Both DJs should be sacked they should never have been allowed to do what they did," she added. "She would be alive today if they hadn't have made that call." The nurse's death prompted a furious outpouring in Britain and Australia against the radio station and the two presenters involved, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, who were said to be "deeply shocked" by the turn of events. Rhys Holleran, chief executive of Southern Cross Austereo, said 2Day FM and the hosts had decided that the show would not return "until further notice out of respect of what can only be described as a tragedy". He also told reporters in Melbourne that the station did not believe it had broken the law. "We're very confident that we haven't done anything illegal," he said. The station initially milked the publicity as the "biggest royal prank ever" but Greig and Christian then apologised following uproar over the stunt itself. In the phone call, in which Greig pretended to be Queen Elizabeth, Saldanha is heard saying, "Oh yes, just hold on, Ma'am", before putting her through to another nurse. Saldanha's death dominated Britain's newspaper front pages. The Sun said it was "heartbreaking and bewildering", and a "needless tragedy". "No doubt she was distraught at unwittingly embarrassing the royals and her employers," its editorial said. "We can only guess at the inner torment of Jacintha, who after years of loyal professionalism suddenly found herself in trouble for something that was not her fault." A wooden cross with a British flag was left outside the hospital Saturday. A note with some flowers outside the nurses' accommodation block said: "Dear Jacintha, our thoughts are with you and your family. From all your fellow nurses, we bless your soul. God bless." The widespread shock at Saldanha's death is a sharp contrast to the excitement that greeted Monday's announcement of Kate's first pregnancy. The baby will be third in line to the throne.