Students from an exclusive Melbourne girls' school were stranded by a cyclone, hospitalised with gastro and caught an aggressive strain of conjunctivitis during a "calamitous" school camp, court documents claim.

The St Catherine's Year 10 camp to Fiji also ended in misery for deputy principal Rosemary Ward, who says her relationship with superiors soured after she escalated concerns about the trip's mismanagement. She claims she is being pressured to resign and is now seeking up to $250,000 in damages and other costs from the Toorak private school.

The deputy principal of St Catherine's is suing her school for violating workplace laws. Picture Michael Clayton-Jones. Credit:Michael Clayton Jones

Ms Ward claimed the camp's "backpacker-style" accommodation was unsuitable for young females, who were leered at by older men.

Drunk backpackers woke the school group when they stumbled past the dormitories late at night, one room flooded due to the wild weather and some students ate their meals on the floor because there were not enough seats.