A family’s dream vacation turned tragic when a mother and her 8-year-old son died of food poisoning at a Dominican resort, according to a new $10 million lawsuit.
The Gougeon family had traveled from Toronto to the Viva Dominicus Beach by Wyndham Resort just after Christmas in December 2023 and enjoyed the buffet dinner on their first night.
But they were all severely ill by 6 a.m. the following morning — with mom April Gougeon and her son Oliver dying soon after being rushed to a hospital.
“We were all throwing up,” father Stephen Gougeon told CTV in his first public remarks since his overwhelming double loss.
“It progressed to a point where we had to try and seek medical attention,” he said.
The family members — including the couple’s other son, Wesley — begged staff for help but were told they would need to get to the on-site medical clinic, which was impossible in their condition.
The resort finally sent help when it became clear the four of them “weren’t getting better,” Gougeon said.
They were taken to the clinic in wheelchairs and then rushed by ambulance to a local hospital, where the mom and son began having trouble breathing, Stephen said.
“They degraded and then my son passed away… and then very shortly after, my wife passed away,” Gougeon told the outlet through tears.
He waited until the next day to break the news to Wesley, who was then just seven, that he’d never see his mother or older brother again — calling it “the worst thing a father and a husband will ever have to do.”
A local coroner’s report from the Dominican Republic confirmed that April and Oliver died from complications related to food poisoning.
The $10 million civil lawsuit claims that the resort lacked proper hygiene and emergency procedures and did not respond in a timely manner to the family’s health needs.
“When [the resort] finally responded after our further plea, there appeared to be confusion about how to handle the situation,” Gougeon said in a statement.
“These delays cost precious time that could have been used to treat our illness. And in the end, it cost my wife and my son their lives.”
The suit, filed in Toronto Superior Court, named Wyndham Hotel Canada II. Inc., Air Transat Holidays A.T. Inc., Transat Tours Canada Inc., Viva Dominicus Beach by Wyndham, and Clinica Canela, the on-site medical clinic, as defendants.
“They’re trying to make something good out of this horrific tragedy that they’ve been through and continue to live with every day,” the family’s attorney, Meghan Hull Jacquin, told CTV.
