A WOMAN from Forest of Dean is among six British holidaymakers who have died after contracting severe gastric illnesses while on holiday in Cape Verde, according to lawyers representing their families.

Karen Pooley, 64, travelled to the island of Sal in October 2025 for a two-week all-inclusive holiday booked through tour operator Tui. Lawyers say she became seriously ill just days into the trip and later died after being airlifted to hospital in Tenerife.

Irwin Mitchell, which is representing the families, said Mrs Pooley was one of a further four British tourists who died between November 2024 and December 2025 after falling ill while holidaying in Cape Verde. In total, the law firm now represents the loved ones of six Britons who have died after holidays to the West African islands since January 2023.

Mrs Pooley, a retired benefits adviser from Lydney, travelled with a close friend to the Riu Funana resort on October 7, 2025. The fortnight-long holiday cost £3,000 and was booked through Tui, the firm said.

On October 11, Mrs Pooley developed sickness and diarrhoea and returned to her room to rest. In the early hours of the following morning, while still suffering gastric illness, she slipped on water leaking from a fridge while going to the bathroom, suffering a broken left leg.

Mrs Pooley was transferred to a local clinic, where over the next four days she continued to experience diarrhoea and vomiting, alongside severe pain from the fracture to her femur. Lawyers said her condition deteriorated during this period.

On October 16, Mrs Pooley was airlifted to Tenerife for urgent medical care and admitted to intensive care. She died in the early hours of October 17.

Irwin Mitchell said Mrs Pooley’s initial death certificate, issued by the Cape Verde authorities, listed the cause of death as multi-organ failure, sepsis, cardio-respiratory arrest and a broken left leg.

The firm said Mrs Pooley was a devoted wife to her husband Andy and a mother to two adult children. Her family has approved the release of details about her death but has said it does not wish to take part in interviews.

Mrs Pooley is one of four British holidaymakers who died last year after contracting severe gastric illnesses in Cape Verde. The others include Elena Walsh, 64, from Birmingham, Mark Ashley, 55, from Bedfordshire, and a 56-year-old man.

Ms Walsh, a part-time nurse and mother-of-one, died in August 2025 after falling ill while staying at the Riu Cabo Verde resort on the island of Sal. Mr Ashley, a self-employed forklift truck driver from Houghton Regis, Bedfordshire, became ill during a stay at the Riu Palace Santa Maria resort in October 2025 and later collapsed at home in the UK, where he was pronounced dead in hospital.

The two other British deaths identified by Irwin Mitchell occurred earlier. Jane Pressley, 62, from Gainsborough, died in January 2023 after falling ill while holidaying at the Riu Palace Hotel in Santa Maria, Sal, the previous November. A man in his 60s from Watford died in November 2024 after suffering gastric illness while staying at the Riu Karamboa resort on the island of Boa Vista. The firm is also representing the family of a 56-year-old man who died in November 2025 after staying at the same resort.

Irwin Mitchell said it is representing more than 1,500 British holidaymakers who claim to have suffered gastric illness linked to holidays in Cape Verde since 2022. All are reported to have booked their trips through Tui.

The law firm said the cases have raised serious concerns about hygiene standards at hotels in Cape Verde, particularly following repeated reports of illness at the same resorts over a number of years.

Meanwhile, the first High Court hearing linked to claims brought by British holidaymakers who fell ill in Cape Verde is due to take place this week.

A case management hearing involving a group action brought by 300 people who suffered illness after holidays at the Riu Palace Santa Maria in the summer of 2022 is scheduled to be heard at the High Court in London on Tuesday, February 4. The hearing will set out a timetable for the claims. Tui has denied liability.

Investigations into all six deaths are ongoing.