ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A Genesee County woman has filed a lawsuit against the Residence Inn Downtown Ann Arbor, alleging negligence that led to a severe antibiotic-resistant infection.
Alexis Williams, accompanied by her two younger cousins, used the hotel’s pool last month.
“It just looked like a regular pool. It didn’t look like it was contaminated or anything wrong with it,” she said.
However, within 30 minutes of swimming, her cousins began vomiting and developed a fever, and 24 hours later, Alexis started feeling severe pain in her right leg.
“It got to the point where you had to practically carry me because I couldn’t walk,” Williams described.
At the hospital, she was diagnosed with MRSA, a dangerous bacterial infection resistant to many antibiotics, sometimes called a “flesh-eating” disease.
“I didn’t know what MRSA was. I didn’t know it was a bacterial flesh-eating disease that possibly could kill you, or, you know, amputate you,” Williams added.
According to the lawsuit filed by Ven Johnson Law, the hotel failed to properly disinfect the pool, with records showing chlorine levels at zero on multiple days prior to the incident.
Unsafe pH levels and dangerous bacterial counts were also documented by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
Attorney Michael Freifeld stated, “Several of the days before Alexis came in contact with this pool, they clearly indicate that the chlorine level for the pool on those days was zero. They had no chlorine in it.”
Williams, a former athlete, has since undergone multiple surgeries and now depends on her mother for everyday tasks.
Reflecting on her experience, she said, “I don’t wish that on anybody else.”
The plaintiff’s complaint alleges the hotel was aware of the dangerous pool conditions but failed to close the pool or warn guests, violating public health regulations.
First Martin Corporation, which owns the Residence Inn Downtown Ann Arbor, has been contacted for comment but has yet to respond to the lawsuit.
A spokesperson for EGLE told Local 4 that since the department has not seen the complaint, it cannot “provide an informed response.”