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Bride who was ill for two years after being 'poisoned by toxic fish at five-star hotel' on honeymoon sues travel firm for hundreds of thousands of pounds
By REBECCA SEALES
PUBLISHED: 13:13 EST, 10 July 2012 | UPDATED: 04:00 EST, 11 July 2012
A luxury handbag designer is suing a holiday firm for hundreds of thousands of pounds after she got food poisoning from an exotic fish on her honeymoon.
Melissa Ker, who owns fashion label Meli Melo – a favourite of the Duchess of Cambridge – contracted a potentially life-threatening stomach bug after eating the ‘large reef fish' during the £8,500 week-long trip to Zanzibar.
She and husband Douglas claim they suffered stomach upsets, cramps and exhaustion after eating the fish, which is believed to have been a red snapper.
Poisoned: Douglas and Melissa Ker, pictured at their wedding in Sicily in May 2009, fell disastrously ill after eating tropical fish on their honeymoon
Perfectly happy: Mr and Mrs Ker married on the gorgeous Mediterranean island of Sicily
Newlyweds: The Kers spared no expense on their lavish honeymoon, which should have been the perfect start to married life
Although Mr Ker, 35, an insurance boss, recovered swiftly, his 33-year-old wife claims the illness left her with such crippling stomach pains that she had to have surgery and suffered depression.
Mrs Ker says she was so ill that she was still displaying symptoms two years later.
Mrs Ker, who designs under the name Melissa Del Bono, and whose customers include Kate Moss, Sienna Miller and Dannii Minogue, alleges the poisoning caused her health problems when she was pregnant and still is ‘very limited in what she eats'.
The couple are suing holiday firm Ultimate Honeymoons, which is based in Sopley, near Christchurch, Dorset. They claim owners David Benton Jones, 37, and his wife Lucy, 35, are liable for hotel staff failing to test for toxins and supplying fish ‘not of satisfactory quality'.
The firm denies liability.
Mr and Mrs Ker, of Notting Hill, West London, met at a polo game in 2007 and married in her native Lipari, Sicily, in May 2009.
Idyllic? Mnemba Island Lodge is an exclusive resort on the coast of Zanzibar, but the Kers claim they fell horribly ill after eating fish there
Stunning: Mnemba has been called the world's most romantic beach destination
Island living: Mr and Mrs Ker had expected a blissful retreat, but claim the consequences of their disastrous honeymoon continued for years afterwards
Luxury: A room in the resort
In early June they flew to Zanzibar for their honeymoon. According to the couple's lawyers, they were struck down by a form of food poisoning known as Ciguatera after eating the reef fish at their five-star hotel, Mnemba Island Lodge.
Ciguatera toxin, which is harmless to fish but poisonous to humans, is found in sea predators, such as barracuda, which eat other fish that consume toxic algae living in coral reef waters.
The toxin is odourless and tasteless, and is also heat-resistant, so cooking does not destroy it.
While Mr Ker, who went to £30,000-a-year boarding school Radley College in Oxford, recovered from the initial illness, Mrs Ker claims she suffered ‘severe diarrhoea for two years'.
Professional romantics: David and Lucy Benton Jones, who run specialist holiday company Ultimate Honeymoons Ltd
Court case: Mr and Mrs Benton Jones are being sued for damages
In a writ filed to the High Court, the couple's lawyers state: ‘On June 12, 2009, both Mr and Mrs Ker dined at Mnemba Island Lodge for lunch. The chef cooked them fish which had been frozen.
‘Within 60 minutes of the meal Mrs Ker fell ill, and within two to three hours of the meal Mr Ker fell ill.'
Promotional material for the Mnemba Lodge describes it as ‘one of the world's finest beach hotels'. It adds: ‘Mnemba has won numerous awards from the world's most romantic beach destination to best hotel on the planet.
‘Guests return to the island to enjoy feasts of fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood all fabulously prepared and presented by Africa's finest chefs.' It describes Mnemba Island as ‘a tiny dream island of coral atolls. Its sandy shores, regarded as some of the most beautiful in the world, are surrounded by a rich and colourful reef brimming with fish'.
Mr Benton Jones, of Ultimate Honeymoons, said: ‘I'm afraid the Kers are completely wrong.
‘They did not book a holiday through Ultimate Honeymoons, although, as they are friends of friends, we did help them get a discount on the booking they made with Mnemba Lodge.
‘Ciguatera isn't an issue associated with the East African Coast so we don't know why they were ill. We were surprised they didn't inform us about this until five months after they returned. We are sorry if they have been ill.'
Lucy Benton Jones, who runs Ultimate Honeymoons Ltd, went on one of their honeymoons when she married her husband in 2004
Enticing: Mnemba Island boasts beautiful sandy beaches, surrounded by a rich and colourful reef brimming with fish of all sizes
Read more: Newly-weds poisoned by exotic fish on £8,500 Zanzibar honeymoon sue for hundreds of thousands | Mail Online
