Shropshire holidaymaker sues after cholera nightmare

Tim Warner, 47, and partner Amanda used the tour operator for a 12-day break to Tunisia in September.

But the couple's £1,488 all-inclusive trip soon turned into a nightmare when Mr Warner fell ill only days after his arrival at the four-star resort.

When his symptoms failed to subside a week after he returned home Mr Warner was taken to hospital and was stunned to discover he had contracted sewage-born disease cholera.

Mr Warner, an architect from Madeley, Telford, said: "It was without doubt the worst hotel I have ever had the misfortune to be a guest at and the smell was something you had to experience to believe.

"However, even at a poor hotel you don't expect to fall ill with something like cholera. It was so serious the doctors told me I could have died from it."

The couple booked the holiday with Thomas Cook at the Solazur Hotel in Hammamet. However, they say their holiday dreams were quickly shattered when they arrived at the hotel and were greeted by a strong odour of sewage.

Mr Warner said: "The smell was the first thing we noticed when we arrived, it was dreadful and so potent it was overpowering. All the guests were very unhappy.

"We were taken to our rooms but couldn't escape the stench so we asked to move and were relocated to a room in the other side of the hotel."

A few days into the trip Mr Warner began to feel unwell suffering with vomiting and diarrhoea, forcing him to spend most of the time in his room.

When the couple returned home Tim made an appointment to see the doctor as he was still feeling ill and was shocked when he was diagnosed with cholera and sent to hospital.

Mr Warner said he he complained to Thomas Cook but was unhappy with their response.

He has now instructed law firm Slater & Gordon to launch a civil case.

A spokeswoman for Thomas Cook said: "The health and safety of our customers is always our primary concern, so we were naturally very concerned to hear that Mr Warner became unwell while he was on holiday with us.

"As we are in the process of liaising directly with Mr Warner's legal representative in relation to this, we are unable to provide any further comment at this time so as not to unduly influence any possible future legal proceedings."