A BRITISH holiday park said it followed the best medical advice when it asked an Irish family to leave due to a suspected case of swine flu.
Niamh Powell (21) from Kinnegad, Co Westmeath, who was on holiday with her extended family, became ill on Saturday morning at the Cala Gran holiday park in Fleetwood, Blackpool. A doctor spoke to her over the phone and said it should be treated as suspected swine flu. He prescribed Tamiflu.
Her mother, Jacqueline, said the manager of the holiday park then ordered the family to leave the site. She refused, saying her daughter was too ill and hundreds of ferry passengers could be affected if the illness was found to be swine flu.
The NHS helpline advised that Niamh Powell should not be moved for at least 48 hours but her mother said the manager told her they needed to leave by Monday morning. A security guard stayed outside their caravan to make sure they did not leave it until they left the holiday park.
A spokesman for the park said it had “a well-developed strategy” in place for dealing with suspected swine flu cases based on advice from the chief medical officer for England and Wales. He claimed the family, including Niamh, continued to come and go from the caravan so the manager had to ask them to leave. Jacqueline Powell said this was untrue and her daughter did not leave the caravan until they left the park.
It has yet to be confirmed if Niamh Powell has swine flu.
