
Stephen and April Gougeon wanted to take their sons Oliver and Wesley on the trip of a lifetime. In December 2023, the family of four traveled from Toronto to the Dominican Republic, looking for fun and adventure. They stayed at the Viva Dominicus Beach by Wyndham Resort, but their dream quickly turned into a nightmare.
The family ate at the resort’s buffet on the night they arrived. By 6 the following morning, they all became violently ill. The family had no idea just how sick they were: Both April and Oliver lost their lives.
Stephen Gougeon opened up to CTV more than a year after the vacation that killed April and Oliver. He recalled the fateful morning.
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“We were all throwing up,” Gougeon explained. “It progressed to a point where we had to try and seek medical attention.”
He said he and his family became so ill no one could even make it to the bathroom. Hotel staff eventually brought the family to the on-site medical center in the afternoon. Unfortunately, staff could not handle the severity of their illness and eventually took them to a clinic.
“They degraded, and then my son passed away … and then very shortly after, my wife passed away,” Gougeon recalled through tears.
He had to explain to his other son that his mother and brother had died before they boarded a plane back to Canada.
“It’s the worst thing – the worst thing a father and a husband will ever have to do,” he said with emotion.
A coroner determined the mother and son died from secondary causes related to food poisoning, per CTV. Gougeon filed a lawsuit against Air Transat Holidays, Transat Tours Canada, Wyndham Hotels, and the clinic where the family was treated. Gougeon claimed he thought he booked a safe vacation at a resort that would “have high health and safety standards.”
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The family’s lawyer, Meghan Hull Jacquin, told CTV the family’s lawsuit is cut and dry.
“I think what the Gougeon family would like is accountability. They’re trying to make something good out of this horrific tragedy that they’ve been through and continue to live with every day,” she said.
Transat spokesperson Marie-Christine Pouliot shared an email statement with CTV expressing sadness about the deaths.
“We choose our suppliers with great care, and the hotel operator has assured us of its full cooperation with the authorities in shedding light on these tragic deaths,” the statement reads.
Gougeon told CTV he chose to speak out so no other family would face the same heartache he and Wesley live with each day.
“I think that resorts need to have better medical practices and policies so that if someone is in my situation, they’re not having to deal with what I have to deal with – for the rest of my life,” he said.
The lawsuit seeks $10 million in damages.