Matt Cardy / Reuters
There will be no pallbearers at the funeral of Dawn Sturgess, the British woman who died from exposure to a novichok chemical weapon, due to fears that her friends and family could be contaminated with the deadly Russian nerve agent that killed her. Sturgess died after she sprayed the nerve agent on her skin, believing it was perfume, according to her partner, Charlie Rowley. Rowley said he found a discarded perfume bottle in which a quantity of the substance was apparently stored and gave it to her. Sturgess died on July 8, four months after a former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were found unconscious on a park bench in the English town of Salisbury after coming into contact with deadly poison. The Skripals have since recovered from their exposure. “The message I received is that there are certain measures in place to make sure the service will be as safe as possible,” said Rev. Philip Bromiley, the pastor who will be officiating. “The service will be a celebration of Dawn’s life, giving thanks for the really loving and giving person she was.”