Family's holiday hell after E.coli outbreak in Mexico

Jan 29 2010 by Dan Warburton, The Journal

The couple, from Hylton Castle, in Sunderland, had saved for months to fund the £2,000 holiday which they had hoped would be the trip of a lifetime.

But after being hit with the illness, they shelled out more than £6,000 of their own cash to pay for medication, taxis and additional medical treatment. Mr Clark also fell ill with sickness symptoms, but did not need hospital treatment.

And they also claimed there were others on the trip that had been affected by sickness.

Now, more than three months after returning from their soured trip, the couple claim they are still experiencing side-effects from their illnesses.

Last night Mr Clark, a senior service adviser with Audi, said: “I was terrified when Natalie became ill – she was in hospital for so long and I was really concerned that something might happen to her. We were in a foreign country and I felt helpless. The holiday was an absolute nightmare. Although the reps were generally available to complain to, they weren’t interested in what we had to say, except to find out if Natalie was fit to fly out of the country.

“The pool was disgusting, the toilets weren’t clean, and there were birds flying in and out of the restaurant.”

Liz Tetzner, Irwin Mitchell’s travel litigation expert, who is spearheading the couple’s compensation claim, said: “It is the responsibility of the tour operator to ensure that health and safety standards are maintained so that holidaymakers are not put at risk.”

A spokesman for Thomas Cook last night confirmed that an investigation had been launched and negotiations were taking place between Ms Daymond and Mr Clark’s legal team from Irwin Mitchell.

A Thomas Cook spokesperson said: “We take all reports of illness very seriously so naturally, we were very concerned to hear that Ms Daymond and Mr Clark had become unwell whilst they were on holiday in Mexico. We do hope that they have now fully recovered. A full investigation is taking place and we continue to discuss the complaint with the couple’s solicitor.”