Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

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Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by DJKeefy »

Tourists have been warned of rampant E.coli infections at an Egyptian resort where a British couple died under suspicious circumstances last year.

Public Health England say 22 holidaymakers have been struck down with E.coli related infections in Egypt this year, with fears the number will rise.

Hurghada, a popular resort along the coast of the Red Sea, has been labelled a ‘hotspot for illness’ where eating food is like playing ‘Russian roulette’.

Brits are being advised to avoid salads, ice cream, cheese and ice cubes as the bug is spread through contaminated water or food.

They should also be careful not to accidentally take gulps of water in swimming pools.

The warning comes after the sudden deaths of John Cooper, 69, and his wife Susan, 63, at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in August last year.

Egyptian authorities claimed after a post-mortem that the couple from Burnley, Lancashire, had died from E.coli, but their daughter Kelly Ormerod disputes this.

The pair died shortly after their granddaughter had walked out of their room due to a ‘funny smell’.

A British post-mortem proved inconclusive although an expert claimed the Coopers may have been exposed to an ‘infectious biological agent or toxic chemicals’.

An inquest into their deaths is due to take on a date yet to be fixed.

Food and hygiene tests carried out by independent health inspectors at the hotel later revealed ‘high levels’ of E.coli.

Two days before the deaths, British mum-of-two Sarah McCormick feared her husband Thomas was going to die from food poisoning at the very same hotel.

The ex-army corporal was left ‘curled up in a ball of pain’ due to crippling stomach pains, sickness and diarrhoea, and had to be placed on a drip.

Thomas Cook evacuated 301 guests from the hotel before admitting that ‘something went wrong’ and the travel firm no longer sells holidays there.

E.coli has an incubation period of three to five days, so many tourists don’t start showing symptoms until they’ve arrived back home.

Public Health England and its sister agencies advise anyone feeling sick after visiting the resort to seek medical attention.

A spokeswoman told Metro: ‘For little ones it can be really quite a serious illness, and as you can imagine with package holidays, it’s really hard to work out what is causing this because everyone has eaten everything and they’ve all been in the pools.’

The government agency has advised visitors to ‘avoid food that has been left uncovered in warm environments and exposed to flies’.

They also ask tourists to avoid ice and to ensure all meat is cooked thoroughly and is not served pink or cold.

Deputy Director of the National Infection Service at Public Health England, Dr. Nick Phin said: ‘Anyone suffering from diarrhoea and vomiting should ensure they keep well hydrated and seek medical advice if their symptoms don’t improve within 48 hours.

‘They should also avoid preparing or serving food while they have symptoms and thoroughly wash their hands after using the toilet to stop the bug being passed to others.’

Head of Travel at Simpson Millar Solicitors Nick Harris called the resort a ‘hotspot for illness’ and said he wasn’t surprised by the ongoing outbreak.

He added: ‘This is very concerning and people are quite rightly worried. If you visit this resort you could be putting your life in someone else’s hands.

‘This area is a repeat offender with very poor hygiene practices and obviously they haven’t cleaned up their act.

‘We have dealt with lots of cases with people left seriously ill and with life long health complications. ‘The standards over there are much more lax then in the UK.

‘When you eat over there you are taking part in Russian roulette, as you have to rely on other people to wash their hands to stop you getting ill.

‘Tour companies need to do much more to ensure their customers safety.’

E.coli is linked to poor hygiene practices and is spread by infected faeces contaminating water or food.

Symptoms include bloody diarrhoea, severe abdominal pain and cramps, vomiting and nausea.

So far this year, four of the 22 English victims have been hospitalised, including one who developed haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS).

The rare condition can cause kidney failure and in rare instances be fatal.

One 19-year-old victim spent 11 days in intensive care in the UK last year after developing suspected HUS on a family trip to Hurghada.

This is the third year in a row that the resort has seen an outbreak of E.coli.

In 2018, five out of 24 Brits who visited the region were hospitalised while a further 11 Brits caught the bug the year before.


Source: https://metro.co.uk/2019/08/21/brits-wa ... -10609803/


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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by Major Thom »

I thought this had been sorted and regular checks where taking place. Obviously not!
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by carrie »

Well I just hope the poor things don't return from Egypt to a British hospital that is sure to finish them off.
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by newcastle »

carrie wrote: Fri Aug 23, 2019 12:26 pm Well I just hope the poor things don't return from Egypt to a British hospital that is sure to finish them off.
Best not to eat the sandwiches! ;)
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by A-Four »

carrie wrote: Fri Aug 23, 2019 12:26 pm Well I just hope the poor things don't return from Egypt to a British hospital that is sure to finish them off.
That has to be one of the most irresponsible comments I have ever read on this forum.

An ex-pat who has no FULL health insurance in Egypt only become too aware of their true situation when they get a really serious health problem. That is when ONE consultant is in charge of their care, add to this the cost of the important LIFE SAVING drugs that maybe required, and not the ones you can pick up so cheaply at your average pharmacy in Luxor.

I now know of three ex-pats who have died in Luxor simply because they could either not afford the medication, or simply could not be bothered, further to that I know of one person who sometimes writes on this form who was kicked out of the country, simply because they knew he had insufficient money to pay for future medication, but it did not stop him seeking help from the old NHS the very moment he arrived back in the U.K.,...........I wonder if that person would like to comment now ?

DON'T knock the NHS, you never know when you will need it most. Oh and in the private hospitals of Cairo, yer don't even get a sandwich, so yer can moan about It. I do know that fact.

You really have to live Egypt to know it. :wi .
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by hatusu »

You say don't mock the NHS, but serious criticism is not mockery. This past summer I have come across appalling examples of deficiencies in the NHS while visiting friends and relations -
my friends 93 yr old blind mother left without proper attention; another friend whose husband has suffered from Parkinson's for a long time was looking forward to a desperately needed break from her round the clock care for him when he was due to go into respite for a week - that was cancelled at the last minute; my sister is still waiting after 4 mths to see a specialist for a painful kidney problem. You can't get to see a doctor in the first place as a normal GP appt at the moment is around 4 wks. Even when after having her BP taken at 2 different pharmacies, and the pharmacists advised her to see a doctor, she still couldn't get an appt within 4 weeks.Here in Luxor I can walk into LMC or virtually any doctors surgery and be seen immediately.
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by Major Thom »

But can you get a proper diagnosis H? I saw many Doctors and had many tests and all failed to diagnose my condition. Took less than a month when I moved to where I am now...2.5 years later here I am on the final leg of my treatment. I had a lot of dental work done in Luxor. When I got here I had to have scar tissue cut away and 8 stitches in my mouth before my implants could be started.
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by carrie »

Well done MT, teeth fixed, hair fixed, mysterious illness diagnosed, you'll be telling us you go to bingo next. :D :D :D :D
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Re: Brits warned of E.coli outbreak in Egyptian resort one year after couple’s death.

Post by newcastle »

I must say I was shocked to learn that Egyptian medical services are not up to the standards of the NHS.

It’s probably because the Egyptians have twice as many people to deal with and rather less money than the 2.3 thousand billion EGP we pump into the NHS each year!
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