Silke Jasso
Royal fans marked two decades since Diana died in a car crash in Paris, triggering a flood of grief across Britain and beyond.
Videos by Rare
Her admirers began paying tribute to Diana at the time she died before dawn, placing candles shaped in the letter “D” at the gates of the London palace that had been her home.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo arrived around 7 a.m. with a large bouquet, which she placed at the Flame of Liberty, a golden memorial above the Alma Tunnel, where the crash took place. The golden flame has become an unofficial memorial to Diana.
A French woman paying tribute, Yvette Demilio, remembered Diana as “a modern mother with a strong character and a strong heart. She was also a fashion icon, and, it is true, I loved her a lot.”
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An Australian woman cried at the site without speaking.
Linda Grant, from Britain, said, “It’s like it was yesterday still, which means she is still here in our hearts. She has never gone away, and she never will. She never will.”
The 36-year-old princess died in the early hours of Aug. 31, 1997. Her Mercedes, pursued by paparazzi, crashed into a concrete pillar in the Alma Tunnel in Paris while traveling at more than 60 mph.
Diana, her boyfriend Dodi Fayed and their driver Henri Paul were all killed. Her bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was injured but survived.
