A family holiday turned into a nightmare when their child nearly drowned in the hotel pool - which had no lifeguards on hand.
Special needs assistant Kalie Sharp, 44, and her 51-year-old husband Oscar Sharp have slammed their holiday operator TUI after lifeguards failed to spot their drowning niece, or provide CPR on the scene. The couple also said that shoddy oxygen equipment led to their child "almost dying."
The couple booked a holiday to La Palma Princess Hotel, Fuencaliente, Canary Islands with TUI. They also brought along their 10-year-old niece Emily Wills and 8-year-old nephew Mason Wills who they live with as a family. On the last day of their trip, on August 31, the family were spending some time at the pool before their flight when Emily suddenly disappeared.
The family looked around the pool for her and were unable to see her, until they saw a shadow under the water. Emily was pulled out of the pool by Kalie and found she wasn't breathing - which was when holiday-makers started to shout for a lifeguard. Luckily, a UK paramedic, 37-year-old Gemma Louise Brown, was present at the resort and jumped forward to help.
The paramedic saved Emily by giving her CPR and making the one oxygen tank last until paramedics arrived. The 10-year-old had drowned in the pool, suffering from secondary cardiocirculatory arrest and pneumonitis.
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She was eventually returned to the UK and after a month was referred to a UK hospital where she was diagnosed with epilepsy. Emily returned to school but the family are still affected by the incident and by the lack of support they received from the hotel and TUI.
Kalie said: "Family time is important as we don't have much family. After the holiday being delayed due to COVID for three years we were so happy to finally enjoy our holiday. However, the holiday went wrong on the last day. One moment she was swimming, the next we couldn't see her.
Kalie, Emily and Mason enjoying the pool (@mediadrumimages / kaliesharp)"We visually searched the pool and next we saw a shadow under the water. It happened so quickly. It was my baby. I pulled her out and she wasn't breathing. Lifeguards took forever to be seen, even with all the shouting.
"Thankfully a UK paramedic, Gemma, who was on holiday with her family at the same resort heard our cries for help and rushed over without hesitation to see if she could help. She saved my baby and worked with the half broken equipment the life guards clearly were not trained on how to use, when they did finally show up."
Kalie described the problems with the equipment and the hotel's procedures. She said: "They only had one oxygen tank to cover all the pools, and no backup. This had to be used sparingly to ensure it lasted until the ambulance arrived, as she needed full oxygen but this was not possible as the tank would only last 15 minutes.
"The portable suction unit was also missing its main vital part so was not able to be used, which is used to suck out water.
She was then transferred by helicopter from Hospital General de La Palma for eight hours to Hospital Universitario in Tenerife, as the hospital was concerned about the water on her lungs and they were not equipped for it."
She added: "Oscar was not able to go in the helicopter, so had to take a flight the next morning. Emily was placed in intensive care for three days to have high oxygen support as she had a large amount of water on her lungs. Then she spent three more days on a ward for observation."
Kalie said the support she received from TUI and the hotel was minimal, with Oscar staying at the hospital because he could speak Spanish. She said: "I was told that myself and my son would not be covered by insurance and had two hours to pack until the coach to the airport arrived, so we had to leave because we didn't have the money to stay, since we'd have to pay everything first and then claim.
"The incident happened on the last day, and once Emily was transferred to the hospital, I spoke to the rep and was told insurance would only cover one parent. I was told the best thing I could do was to get the flight and sort everything else out in the UK. We didn't know if we could even claim the money back. Tui had offered us a free flight home, but there were none available for anytime while she was in hospital and up to a week from being discharged."
Since the incident, Kalie has since kept in contact with Gemma, the paramedic who saved Emily's life, and she has also reached out to TUI to make changes. She messaged the CEO directly on LinkedIn, but was told by TUI that the hotel had an independent investigation four weeks after the incident, which she wasn't allowed to see.
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TUI sent a response to Kalie on October 11, and said: "This audit reviewed things including but not limited to, points such as lifeguard training, safety signs around the pool regarding supervision of children and the medical equipment within the hotel. This said, we have taken your feedback seriously and it has also been shared and discussed at length with the hotel manager. Whilst the hotel does meet local standards, they will continue to review if any further positive changes can be made to enhance their processes further."
Kalie said: "This incident has had an impact on us all, being separated in different countries, as well as knowing the harsh reality that Emily would not be here today if it wasn't for Gemma doing what she does as a job in the UK, there aren't enough words to describe how thankful we are for her help."
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