Nurse At Kate Middleton’s Hospital Found Dead After Prank [Updated]

After being pranked by Australian DJs, she may have committed suicide.

1. On Tuesday, the nurse apparently believed a pair of Australian radio DJs when they called the hospital pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles.

The DJs were hoping to talk to Kate Middleton, who was being treated at King Edward VII Hospital (above) at the time for extreme morning sickness. She has since been released. The nurse took the call and put it through to a second nurse, who gave the DJs some information about Kate.

Image by Alastair Grant / AP

2. The nurse was found at an address close to the hospital this morning.

At 9:30 a.m., she was found unconscious and could not be revived. The Daily Mail says suicide is suspected, though authorities are calling her death “unexplained.”

Image by Alastair Grant / AP

3. Audio of the prank spread widely this week, though the DJs did apologize.

In an apology issued before the news of the nurse’s death broke, the DJs said, “We were very surprised that our call was put through, we thought we’d be hung up on as soon as they heard our terrible accents. We’re very sorry if we’ve caused any issues, and we’re glad to hear that Kate is doing well.”

4. Update: The nurse has been identified as Jacintha Saldanha, and the hospital has released a statement.

A spokesperson for Edward VII Hospital said, “We can confirm that Jacintha was recently the victim of a hoax call to the hospital. The hospital had been supporting her throughout this difficult time.” The chairman of the hospital, Lord Glenarthur, added, “Jacintha was a first class nurse who cared diligently for hundreds of patients during her time with us. She will be greatly missed.”

The DJs behind the prank, Mel Greig and Michael Christian, have apparently quit Twitter. The Daily Mail says Christian was still tweeting about the prank as recently as this morning.