Something suspicious happened in that room
Daughter of tragic Egypt couple says they didn’t die of natural causes
JOHN and Susan Cooper’s daughter has dismissed claims the pair died of natural causes. Kelly Ormerod insisted they were fit and well before their deaths at an Egypt hotel. She said: “Something suspicious has gone on.”
THE daughter of tragic British tourists John and Susan Cooper told how the couple went to bed perfectly healthy before they woke up sick the next day and died in front of her.
Kelly Ormerod yesterday angrily dismissed claims by officials their deaths were due to natural causes and has demanded a full investigation.
John, 69, and Susan, 63, died within hours of each other while on holiday at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada, Egypt, with Thomas Cook.
Other guests have reported sickness and one man claimed his wife contracted typhoid there earlier this year.
As hundreds of holidaymakers were evacuated from the hotel yesterday over health fears, Kelly, 40, said: “I believe something suspicious has gone on ... something has happened in that room and caused them to be taken from us.
“They had no illness, no stomach upset, no vomiting, no illness whatsoever. They were in perfect health when they went to bed.
“When we woke up, my mum hadn’t come down to sit on the sunbeds so I went to knock on the door and saw that they were both very unwell.
“It was about 11am when I went to the bedroom. They said they were extremely ill and needed help. I watched them die before my very eyes and they had exactly the same symptoms.
“Doctors came to the room and they couldn’t save dad. They just couldn’t help and he died before my eyes. I got an ambulance with mum to hospital and while she was in hospital she died.”
Kelly was on holiday with her parents and her three children at Hurghada. It is one of the most popular beach resorts in Egypt, a country that attracted around 320,000 British holidaymakers last year.
Thomas Cook has dismissed claims John and Susan may have been victims of carbon monoxide poisoning. The firm
said: “We are aware of the speculation. We have no evidence to support this.”
But tourists Alison Cope said the Cooper family, of Burnley, Lancs, had raised fears about air-conditioning.
The 44-year-old, from Moseley, Birmingham, added: “I believe it was Kelly, she approached us at the drinks and she was very upset, saying, ‘It’s the air conditioning.’”
Alison, who was flying home last night, also claimed five out of seven of her family members fell ill during their two-week stay.
She added: “The food is just disgusting, it’s undercooked. I know so many people who have been ill.”
Another guest claimed children had suffered ear infections and the pool water was changed overnight on Tuesday, the day the Coopers died, with a strong smell of disinfectant the Wednesday. Janice Goodwin stayed at the hotel in May with husband David and suffered a stomach illness. The mum-of-three, who has an existing liver condition, was in intensive care for three days before being allowed to travel home. David said medics in Egypt said she had food poisoning. But when her liver consultant later studied the local medical report, it was found she had been diagnosed with typhoid. David, 63, of Beccles, Suffolk, said: “We had only been in that hotel. We had not been anywhere else.” He told how Thomas Cook later paid the couple £1,500 compensation. David added: “They knew about this three months ago and are still sending people there.”
Responding to the typhoid claims, the holiday firm said: “We are aware a number of customers have come forward to say they have experienced illness staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada, Egypt.
“We are very sorry for those customers whose holidays have been spoiled. We take all illness very seriously and we will continue to investigate any outstanding cases.”
Aqua Magic general manager Dieter Geiger said he was “deeply saddened” by John and Susan’s deaths.
He added: “The preliminary report indicates death was due to natural causes. There are no indications to support allegations of an increased incidence of illness at the hotel.”
Hurghada governor Ahmed Abdallah dismissed the airconditioning claims. He said: “This is not logical because the air-condion tioner of the hotel is central and if there is a leak it would have affected all the 2,500 guests at the hotel.
“Also, we took a sample of the food of the hotel. But if there is a problem it would have affected other people.”
Hurghada hospital chief Dr Maged Eladawy said builder John was killed by a heart attack and Susan, who worked for Thomas Cook in Burnley, died “from grief ” and “nervous shock” three hours later.
Kelly is anxiously waiting for the results of a postmortem.
She said: “Thomas Cook have been amazing, we have support from the company and I can’t praise them enough for what they’ve done.
“My focus is on getting my children home. All we want is answers and a cause of death.”
Around 100 Brits were being flown home from the resort last night while 200 others had moved to new hotels.
They were in perfect health when they went to bed. No vomiting, no illness KELLY ON HER PARENTS THE NIGHT BEFORE THEY DIED