British couple die in Egypt from 'heart failure'

John and Susan Cooper passed away within hours of each other on Tuesday

Tour operator Thomas Cook is evacuating all of its customers from the Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel in Egypt's Red Sea resort. AP

A British couple, who died on holiday in Egypt, were suffering from heart and respiratory failure, Egyptian authorities have said.

John Cooper, 69, and his wife Susan, 63, passed away within hours of each other while staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

In a statement released on Friday, authorities from the Red Sea governate said Mr Cooper died in his hotel room at 11am on Tuesday morning. Mrs Cooper was taken to hospital later that day and died at 5.12pm.

British travel operator Thomas Cook said it was evacuating all of its customers from the Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel as a precaution.

Reports in British newspapers on Thursday suggested the deaths could have been caused by Carbon Monoxide poisoning but Thomas Cook said there was no evidence to support this.

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Thomas Cook said in a statement: “We are aware of the speculation in some of today’s media that their deaths may have been caused by Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Currently we have no evidence to support this.

“A team of 24 Thomas Cook representatives have been supporting our 300 customers in the hotel overnight. We will be contacting those customers due to travel to the Steigenberger Hotel in Hurghada in the next four weeks to offer alternative holiday options.”

The hotel, which is part of a German chain, said there had not been a rise in cases of illness.