Family poisoned on their dream holiday will "never recover".

It was the holiday of a lifetime, but a family has been left devastated after they were poisoned.

The Esmond family were on a spring break, in the gorgeous Virgin Islands. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the family of four.

On March 18, the family arrived to their luxurious villa, surrounded by rocky cliffs and the open ocean.

But by that night, the family’s two sons, Ryan and Sean, were having crippling seizures and mother, Theresa, and father, Steve, were experiencing “adverse health effects”.

On the second night, the family desperately called for paramedics to come quickly. Within hours, they were airlifted to different hospitals in Philadelphia.

Without even knowing, the family had been inhaling odourless, colourless and toxic gas – gas that had been sprayed the same day of their arrival to remove indoor bugs.

Gas that had been banned since 1984.

Now, three months on, top island officials have announced that Steve, 49, and his two sons have been left completely paralysed. They are unlikely to ever recover.

Virgin Islands Governor Kenneth Mapp has made an emotional statement saying, “For all intents and purposes, the doctors do not expect any significant recovery from their present condition.”

Therese has been discharged from hospital, and is the only family member to show improvements, but she now has to face the reality that her husband and two boys could be paralysed for the rest of their lives.

Father Steve cannot even sit up without assistance and must be strapped in. Sean has regained consciousness and is paralysed from the neck down, whilst his 14 year old brother, Ryan continues drop “in and out” of a coma. When Ryan does wake up, he has no control over the movement of his limbs or body.

A spokesperson for the family, James Maron, has said that the “boys are in a rough shape. The family are all fighters. They’re fighting for everything right now. I understand it’s a long recovery.”

The pesticide which is alleged to have poisoned the family, Terminix, is not permitted for residential use, and has been banned since 1985, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency.  Terminix contains a toxic ingredient, methyl bromide, that can cause nervous or respiratory damage.

Despite the ban, it appears that a group of exterminators used the harmful substance when fumigating a room at the Esmond’s villa.

This is not the first time that Terminix has caused severe health problems, with up to eight civil law suits being ruled against them for similar reasons.

A case in New York reported that a mother and daughter were forced to move away from their family home, after Terminix led to severe illness. Another case saw thousands of fish and aquatic animals when Terminix was spilled into a stream.

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