Seventh British tourist dies in Cape Verde in three years following gastric illness

A man in his 50s boarded a flight to Cape Verde in August 2025 expecting a week of rest at an all-inclusive resort. Two days into the holiday at the five-star Riu Palace Santa Maria on the island of Sal, he developed severe diarrhea, abdominal cramping, and vomiting. The symptoms never fully left him. Twelve weeks later, in November, he died from multi-organ failure. He has become the seventh British tourist to die in Cape Verde over the past three years following gastric illness contracted during a holiday.

His wife, who has asked to remain unnamed, described the shock of watching her husband's condition deteriorate long after they returned home. The couple had paid more than £6,000 for the week-long break through TUI, and they had visited the same resort the year before to celebrate his retirement. On their second visit, she noticed the resort had changed noticeably. When her husband fell ill, she said, the holiday was ruined. But worse was what came after. His symptoms persisted. He tried to carry on with normal life, but it was clear something was fundamentally wrong. By October, his health had collapsed so severely he required hospital admission. He died on November 2, 2025. His wife said she would do anything to turn back time, but she knows nothing can undo what has happened. She wanted people to know what had happened to her family, and to others like them.

The man was already immunocompromised, which may have made him more vulnerable to severe illness. But he was not alone in falling sick at Cape Verde resorts. Over the past three years, six other British tourists have died following gastric illness contracted during holidays there. Jane Pressley, 62, from Gainsborough, died in January 2023 after staying at the Riu Palace Hotel in Santa Maria. Mark Ashley, 55, from Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire, died in November 2025 after staying at the same hotel. Karen Pooley, 64, from Lydney in Gloucestershire, died in October 2025 after becoming ill and breaking her leg while staying at the Riu Funana resort, also on Sal. The pattern is unmistakable: British tourists arriving at Cape Verde resorts, falling ill within days, and in some cases, never recovering.

Cape Verde authorities have now confirmed what many suspected. Testing of 156 samples—including drinking water, fresh food, food-handling surfaces, food handlers, irrigation water, and medical specimens—detected shigella bacteria in samples of water used to irrigate fresh produce on both Sal and Boa Vista. Shigella is highly contagious. Only a small number of bacteria are needed to cause infection, and contaminated food or water is one of the most common transmission routes. Yet the authorities stated that the positive samples remained within surveillance parameters and therefore did not constitute an outbreak. They issued guidance to businesses recommending enhanced disinfection procedures for fresh produce and stepped-up inspection activities, but stopped short of declaring a public health emergency.

The scale of illness is far larger than the death toll suggests. Irwin Mitchell, a firm of specialist solicitors, has been appointed by over 1,700 UK tourists who have visited Cape Verde and fallen ill since 2022. The firm is currently supporting the families of eight holidaymakers, including the man who died in November. Jatinder Paul, the solicitor leading the team, said the firm continues to receive contact from hundreds more people describing how their holidays were ruined by serious illness. He emphasized that the effects of gastric illness should never be downplayed—symptoms can lead to lifelong and debilitating complications, and in some cases, death.

For travelers planning trips to Cape Verde in the coming weeks and months, the advice from legal professionals is stark: eat only fully cooked, steaming hot meals. Select only fruits that can be peeled. Avoid raw vegetables and salads. The responsibility, Paul argued, lies not only with individual travelers but with tour operators, who are responsible for ensuring the safety of those who have booked all-inclusive package holidays, and with Cape Verde authorities, who must address the documented hygiene failures on the islands. He also warned those affected by illness not to accept early settlement offers from tour operators without understanding their full legal rights, urging them to seek independent legal advice. What began as a holiday has, for hundreds of British tourists, become a medical and legal ordeal with no clear resolution in sight.