British tourists are among at least 60 people who have been rushed to hospital with toxic gas poisoning after a pump broke at a Costa del Sol hotel swimming pool.
According to a regional government official, the system broke when a circuit breaker on the pump, which injects chlorine and acid into the pool, appeared to trip.
Children and elderly people were among those hospitalised from the unnamed hotel in Benahavis.
The official added that the chlorine and pH systems stopped working as a result of the issue, while other gases continued to be released, poisoning the swimmers.
The pool has remained closed and sealed off for “maintenance reasons.”
Tests have been carried out by scientists at a local lab in the Malaga TechPark.
An investigation into the leak is ongoing and it remains unclear if the pool will be reopened today.
It comes just days after a five-year-old boy was left fighting for his life after eight swimmers were poisoned by chlorine fumes at a swimming pool in Rome.
The incident took place at an unnamed hotel in Benahavis (stock image)
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Four other children, ages between 10 and 15, required medical treatment following the incident.
Around 20 people were in the pool at the time they began to feel symptoms from the leak.
People suffered extreme burning in the eyes and throat, coughing and shortness of breath.
Seven of the 20 people in the pool at the time were children under the age of 10.
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The five-year-old was rushed to Sant’Andrea Hospital in Rome following the poisoning
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The incident took place a sports club in Mentana, in the outer areas of Rome.
All 50 people in the pool area were evacuated from the pool area as soon as officials became aware of the situation.
The five-year-old boy was taken to Rome’s Sant’Andrea Hospital, and the club was temporarily closed.
A major chlorine leak occurred at the Sea Club Hotel in Majorca, in July 2022, that left more then 20 people, including children, poisoned.
Visitors to the hotel reported vomiting, skin irritation, and itching, when the leak occurred.
Medical staff administered oxygen to the affected holidaymakers.
Pool leaks become poisonous when chlorine concentrations and the pH are not kept at correct levels.
The imbalance leads to the creation of toxic substances that cause eye irritation, respiratory problems and gastrointestinal disorder.