Family 'fell sick on Spanish Jet2 holiday where holidaymaker got fatal food poisoning'
A family from West Yorkshire are taking legal action over claims they fell sick at the same Canary Islands resort where a holidaymaker contracted food poisoning and later died.
Ten of the 11-strong family party fell ill just a few days into their two-week all-inclusive holiday at the Occidental Jandia Playa Resort in Fuerteventura last summer.
The family experienced severe sickness and diarrhoea that lasted for days, and four of them continue to be affected by the illness, according to their solicitors Irwin Mitchell, who are pursuing legal action on their behalf against Jet2holidays.
It was the same resort where Leslie Green contracted the bacterial infection salmonella in 2024.
An inquest last year heard the 70-year-old and his wife Julie, from Little Lever in Bolton, had also been holidaying with Jet2.
The coroner concluded Mr Green had died from food poisoning contracted whilst on holiday after eating partially cooked chicken.
Joyce Arandall, a credit controller from Rothwell, near Leeds, was celebrating her 60th at the resort.
Relatives Andrew and Rachel Constable, who were the first to arrive on July 22 with their children and two other members of the family, fell ill two days later, after dining at the hotel’s restaurant.
Andrew said he felt nauseous as soon as the couple arrived at their hotel room and immediately needed to go to the toilet.
He said his stomach felt as though it was “going to explode” and it was “like nothing he’d ever experienced”.
Rachel, who also fell sick, said there were “glaring signs” that staff weren’t following basic hygiene guidelines.
One day the lasagne was “sold and congealed”, on another the spring rolls were frozen inside – and one night they were served raw chicken, she claimed. After they complained staff wore hairnets and gloves – but only for a day.
Mrs Arandall, who arrived with her 81-year-old mum Lavine Bottomley on July 24, fell ill three days later, experiencing stomach cramps, sickness and diarrhoea.
She visited her GP back in the UK, but no tests were able to be done and the cause of her illness is still unknown. She still needs to stay close to a toilet due to ongoing symptoms.
She said the holiday was a “disaster” from the start: “The hotel was dirty. The bedding was unclean, towels were stained and there were cockroaches in our rooms. Even the pool had debris floating on top.
“The restaurant was chaotic, with cats and birds roaming freely. A waiter asked me to move out of the way while he played football with food.
"When we showed a waitress raw chicken we had been served, she rolled her eyes and shrugged as if it was normal.”
Irwin Mitchell, which represents four other holidaymakers including Julie Green, said the family’s experiences “appears to form part of a wider pattern”.
A Jet2 spokesperson said: "We are sorry to hear these reports of customers feeling unwell.
"As legal proceedings are ongoing, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time."