Mum’s Greece holiday horror as her children and husband are rushed into hospital

A mum from Oldham has said her family has been left ‘traumatised’ as both her children and husband were hospitalised and placed on a drip after being hit with suspected food poisoning while on holiday.

Melissa Pickering, 30, claims she was forced to shell out £1,000 on hospital bills, medication and ‘emergency’ flights home after her husband and two young boys, seven and five, became severely ill whilst staying at Labranda Blue Bay Resort in Rhodes, Greece.

The mum-of-two said: “It’s been a nightmare. Our family holiday was wrecked. I've spent nearly £1,000 on medication and flights.

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“The holiday was nearly £4,000. We decided to go away for some family time and it turned into a disaster. We only had four days of happiness. It was so scary.”

Melissa, who works as an auxiliary nurse, said she booked the all inclusive holiday ahead of an operation she is undergoing, hoping it would be a chance to spend quality time as family before her hospital stay.

But within days of the getaway, her two boys Harry, seven, and Billy, five, were struck down with a mystery illness, which had symptoms similar to food poisoning.

She said: “They were very lethargic and sleeping all the time, they wouldn’t wake up. They looked horrible in colour and really dehydrated. As soon as they had a sip of water it came up straight away.”

Melissa claims that four days after the family arrived, both of her sons were admitted to hospital and remained there on drips for two nights. She claims staff at the hospital confirmed it was food poisoning.

“The doctor said, ‘We need to keep these boys in they’re really poorly. They need drips.’ They were a greeny, grey colour. I have never seen my older son that colour before,” she said.

Melissa claims that while she was at the hospital’s reception paying the 300 euro medical bills, a doctor rushed downstairs and said her husband Bradley, 28, had ‘collapsed’.

“I went back upstairs and he was surrounded by loads of doctors and nurses. It was horrendous. I was panicking. I was just so scared. My son Billy was screaming.”

Melissa said her husband was then also placed on a drip for several hours.

The family then left the hospital and returned to the hotel but became ill again in a matter of days and had to be seen by an ‘emergency doctor’, Melissa claims.

She said: “I was giving them boiling water out of the kettle. We wouldn't touch the tap water or ice, then the children had chicken and it all started again.”

The family were meant to be staying at the hotel for two weeks, from May 11 until May 25, but flew home on Wednesday (May 22).

Melissa said: “I had to pay £700 in flights home because the kids were terrified. I was so scared for them. They wouldn't eat. We needed to just get them home for safety. My sons were crying to go home, we could not stay there..”

She claims she has been unable to get a refund from On The Beach as the hotel does not offer refunds.

On the Beach describes the hotel as having an Italian restaurant, a Greek taverna and a beachside brunch at guests’ ‘fingertips’. The resort has a 4 out of five-star ranking on Tripadvisor.

An On the Beach spokesperson said: “We’re sorry that the Webb family were unwell on their holiday. We haven't been contacted since their return home a few days ago, so we'll get in touch with the Webbs directly to investigate."