A BLACKBURN mum is taking High Court action after she and her son fell ill on a 'holiday from hell'.

Janet Helsdon is one of 107 people who have launched a claim for damages which could top £1million in total.

The writ claims holidaymakers came down with salmonella and other gastro intestinal diseases after eating undercooked food and using a swimming pool contaminated with faeces.

Mrs Helsdon, 48, and her son Luke, six, say they fell very poorly while staying at the First Choice Holiday Village in Sarigerme, south west Turkey.

The nurse manager has told how the 10-day, £3,000 all-inclusive holiday became a nightmare. She said: "It was awful - the holiday from hell."

The writ issued at the High Court claims: • holidaymakers were given lukewarm food which should have been hot, undercooked barbecued food, and uncovered food which was infested with flies and wasps.

• food was allowed to stand on the buffet for long periods, chicken was served pink in the middle, and uneaten food was reused at the end of each day.

• staff failed to clear away vomit from a hotel restaurant properly and drinks were served in dirty plastic cups.

• hotel staff were not properly trained in hygiene, including regular hand washing, wearing gloves.

• instead of being thoroughly cleaned lifeguards asked guests to remove the faeces from the pool.

Mrs Helsdon, her husband James, a 38-year-old who works for Blackburn whiteboard manufacturer Promethean, and twins Luke and Tyler stayed at the resort in August 2008.

She said Luke fell ill a couple of days into the holiday and she became poorly 48 hours later.

Mrs Helsdon said the she and her son did not recover until the last day and most of their holiday was spent in their room.

She said: "We were more knackered when we came home than before we went.

"We saw faeces in the pool. There were so many people being sick.

"We saw people on drips being treated at the complex because they were ill.

"It was a lovely place, apart from the hotel but we would never go back to Turkey again."

When the family returned home, they began to look into the situation on the internet and found a series of similar complaints.

Mrs Helsdon said: "It was frustrating when we came back as the whole situation could have been avoided."

Mr Helsdon said they had nothing against First Choice Holidays and booked through them since.

But the family is bidding for compensation for the cost of the holiday, loss of time and for the sickness.

BBC1's Watchdog programme featured the problems at the resort in an episode in September 2009.

Now the case has this week hit the High Court in London.

The group of holidaymakers claim despite a higher than usual incidence of gastric illness, First Choice continued to send guests to the hotel and failed to warn them that guests were ill.

The holidaymakers have instructed solicitor Andrew Morton of solicitors Pannone to act for them in their claim for damages.

First Choice could not be contacted for comment, but has previously said the level of sickness was low considering 48,000 customers visited 'one of its most popular resorts'.

Sarigerme takes its name from a nearby beach and is close to the village of Osmaniye.

According to an official tourist website it has 'got everything needed for a classic sun-and-sand holiday'.