Coroner's warning to travel firms over pool death

Gregory White, of Common Road, Batley, was plucked from a swimming pool at the hotel in Turkey and while fellow holidaymakers made desperate efforts to revive him, he was pronounced dead at hospital.

The 43-year-old BT engineer was on holiday with his wife and two daughters when he drowned at the Topkapi Palace Hotel resort in Antalya in November 2008.

An inquest into his death yesterday heard a catalogue of concerns about the treatment he received.

Bradford Coroner's Court was told that Metropolitan Police officer William Riches, a volunteer ambulance service community responder, rushed to help Mr White, who was not breathing.

In a statement read out at the inquest he said he began chest compressions and described other efforts to revive Mr White as "totally ineffective and "contrary to the training" he had received in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

A bag and mask apparatus was not working and when a defibrillator arrived a man who identified himself as a doctor applied the pads to Mr White as if to shock him, but the casualty's feet were still dangling in the pool and he had to intervene.

Mr Riches said that he believed the "medic" was "about to administer a shock which could have caused others to be electrocuted".

When an ambulance arrived, he and another holidaymaker continued CPR and both boarded the ambulance – described as "little more than a Ford Transit with a trolley and a few bits of equipment inside" – to continue the treatment on the journey to the hospital, such was their concern.

There was no monitoring system in the ambulance, the oxygen was not working and there was no defibrillator.

Mr Riches said he was "astounded at the inaction of staff at the hotel". A lifeguard was present but was by the children's pool, the inquest was told.

Thomas Cook health and safety manager Derek Drover said a "defect letter" subsequently provided to the hotelier would have recommended there should be staff trained in conducting emergency procedures around the pool. It would have been left with the supplier (hotel manger) and followed up the following season.

But by the time of Mr White's death, Thomas Cook had received no response from management about what they had done to resolve this or were going to do and people booking holidays were not alerted.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, coroner Roger Whittaker said having been under the water for so long Mr White was unlikely to be revived – despite the "commendable" attempts to help him. But he said he had concerns about the lack of facilities and said one lifeguard was "hardly sufficient".

He added: "I shall be issuing a rule 43 letter drawing attention of Thomas Cook and also the umbrella organisation under which all tour operators ply their trade that in my view there ought to be some way in which if defects are noted that desirably should be rectified."