A couple from Wales were struck down by gastric illness following a holiday abroad which left them unable to work. Karen Edwards, 58, and her partner David Watkinson, 55, had to cut short their dream holiday in Cape Verde and pay for an early flight back home after falling violently ill in October.
Upon their return, David tested positive for campylobacter, while Karen was unable to go back to work more than five weeks They are among more than 500 British holidaymakers who have now instructed lawyers to investigate why so many people were struck down with gastric illnesses this summer. The holidaymakers all stayed at TUI hotels on Cape Verde, a group of islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa.
According to business owner Karen, the couple were looking forward to their holiday abroad. Speaking to Wales Online, she said: "We hadn't been away since before Covid. Cape Verde looked amazing, we wanted to go for luxury and so we decided to book a five-star hotel all-inclusive in an adults-only resort. We've work hard, we had worked all the way through the summer and it was just something we were looking forward to and have some relaxation."
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The couple had arrived at TUI Blue Cabo Verde on Sunday, November 2 and were meant to stay at the resort for 10 days.
"It was lovely, beautiful and stunning when we arrived," Karen said. "We first arrived at midnight, they had left some food out for us in a buffet. We had been delayed on the flight by about three or four hours getting there, so we were quite hungry. Now, we did sort of think at the time it did seem a bit odd that the food was left out - we had cheeses and meats and they weren't kept in a cool or cold area. But we were just grateful that we had just got food.
"The next morning, I had an omelette that had been freshly made, while my partner had a continental breakfast with meat. There were also cats begging for food around buffet areas. We went for lunch then, I had a lasagne and I realised it wasn't cooked, it was pink and so I left it."
But the couple didn't eat again for the rest of the day. On Monday, both Karen and David fell ill with severe stomach cramps, David was also prescribed antibiotics for sickness and diarrhoea. They eventually had to be seen by a doctor at the resort, who prescribed anti-sickness tablets.
The couple continued to suffer from symptoms so bad that they felt they needed to cut short their holiday and return home. The couple had to pay £600 for additional flights to return back home.
Karen said: "We hadn't eaten and we just wanted to go home. I had stomach cramps, diarrhoea and my whole body was just aching with pain. It was worse because we felt we were so far from home. We tried to book the earliest flight back home on the third day."
David added: "I had been ill for four days straight and I hadn't eaten anything solid for days. I tried to eat something on the fourth day and it brought it back on. I was so weak and I wanted to just go back home."
When they returned back to Pwllheli however, the couple were still ill. The two undertook a test and David was diagnosed with campylobacter, which is an infectious disease.
"I lost a fair bit of weight," David said. "I was totally run down - it has taken so much out of me. Even though I'm not sick or have diarrhoea anymore - I still feel like something is not right."
The two have now returned back to work, but are still concerned about potential risk to other holidaymakers. Karen said: "It has definitely made me more nervous about going on holiday abroad again. Those arriving as we left looked to be older people and we genuinely feared for what might happen to them. The standards at this hotel were completely unacceptable and I’m not surprised others had similar experiences. Apologies at this stage aren’t good enough. What everyone needs now is the reassurance that something is being done to see that this doesn’t happen to anyone else again."
Jatinder Paul, leading the team of specialist international serious injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell supporting those affected, said: “We are supporting more than 500 people, including more than 200 people who stayed at the Riu Palace Santa Maria alone, who at best had their holiday ruined and at worst had their health seriously affected following stays in the Sal area of Cape Verde.
“Bacterial illnesses such as salmonella, campylobacter, shigella and ecoli are serious and should never be underestimated. They can cause long-term health issues for the most vulnerable, and even death. The fact some still remain ill several months after their return is very concerning. If the causes are identified, then it is vital that lessons are learned to ensure no other holidaymakers are left with debilitating illnesses, and we hope to work with TUI to resolve the claims amicably. The sheer number of people who continue to approach us on a daily basis is incredible, but as part of our investigations, we remain keen to hear from anyone else affected while staying at these hotels in Cape Verde."
In response, a spokesperson for TUI said: "We are sorry to hear about these experiences in Cape Verde, however as this is now a legal matter it would be inappropriate to comment. We’d like to reassure customers that instances like this are extremely rare."
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