Mum of two calls for explanation of chemical burns suffered by family on holiday in Corfu
22/10/2009
A mother of two has spoken of her frustration at still not knowing why her family, including her two children, were left burnt by chemicals in the swimming pool of a five-star holiday resort in Corfu.
Susan Austin’s family, from Billericay in Essex, were among 42 Britons who launched legal action against tour operator Thomas Cook after suffering from agonising chemical burns due to unknown chemicals that were used in pools Mitsis Roda Beach Hotel in July 2007.
Susan and her partner, Lee, were so badly affected that it was too painful to even put on clothing and leave the hotel room. Ms. Austin’s sons also developed excruciating rashes on their legs, arms, back and genitals after playing in the pool on their first day at the resort.
Ms. Austin has voiced her frustration and concern that the families have still not been told what caused the burns or what they were exposed to.
“For two nights my children were crying in agony and could barely walk, they were so badly burnt,” Ms Austin said. “To this day we have not received satisfactory answers or explanations. Our family holiday was completely ruined. We, along with many others, want to know what exactly happened with the pool and what our children have been subjected to.”
The hotel pool remained open, despite the large number of people who were affected by the chemicals, and no warnings were issued from staff. The pool continued to be treated with the unknown chemicals on a daily basis.
“When I realised we were not the only family affected, I approached the hotel manager. He told me that, despite 100 children having been affected, the pool was safe to use as long as you showered before and after bathing” Mrs. Austin explained.
At first the hotel doctor advised the family to stay out of the hotel pool for a few days until the rashes had gone down, but eventually he admitted that the burns were caused by the level of chemicals in the pools.
A holiday compensation settlement was reached by travel law specialists, Irwin Mitchell, for the 42 affected holidaymakers staying at the hotel who were burnt by the chemicals in the pools. The settlement was made with all tour operators who sent customers to the resort.
The family’s specialist lawyer, Jenny Brooks of Irwin Mitchell, said “Clearly something went badly wrong with the swimming pool at this hotel although we still don't know the precise reason why. As well as dealing with claims on behalf of 42 clients at the Mitsis Roda Beach hotel we have previously acted for a number of other clients who sustained chemical burns in swimming pools at other hotels.
“Often these injuries are caused because of inappropriate cleaning methods, too high a concentration of chemicals used in the pool or faulty pool filtration plants. Although clear guidelines on swimming pool safety exist in the UK and many other parts of the world, sadly these are not always followed and this can lead to problems including chemical burns or outbreaks of serious illness.
“Hotel owners and tour operators have a duty to often take adequate steps to ensure pool safety, but all too often we are instructed to help clients who have suffered injuries when things are not done correctly. Clearly more needs to be done to ensure good practice is consistently applied and British tour operators are best placed to ensure that this happens.
“While we are pleased to have reached settlement in these cases, the fact that the hotel management refused to close or drain the pool and failed to take their customers’ complaints seriously enough is a cause of great very concern. We hope that the lessons from are learned from this incident so that others do not have to go through the pain and upset that our clients had to endure at the Mitsis Roda Beach hotel.”
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