Hotel restaurant floor collapses in Majorca with tourists injured and 150 evacuated | World | News
Hundreds of people were evacuated. (Image: utimahora.es)
Holidaymakers were injured and more than 150 people were evacuated after part of a hotel dining room collapsed in Majorca. Many customers were slightly injured in the accident and were treated in the emergency room.
The emergency emerged tonight in the popular tourist resort of Santa Ponça. The incident took place around 21.30 at the Rey Don Jaime hotel, located at number 4 on Gran Vía Puig Major street. Several customers were eating in one of the complex’s dining rooms when the ground suddenly collapsed. Photos published in Spanish newspaper Ultimahora.es show the dining room with floorboards collapsed, tables and chairs sliding sideways and debris on the floor. Firefighters from Calvià station, along with ambulances, Local Police patrols and the Civil Guard, rushed to the scene to assist possible victims.
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Rey Don Jaime hotel in Majorca (Image: Jet2)
While ambulance teams treated many slightly injured people, approximately 150 people were evacuated as a precaution.
A full investigation will be launched to determine why part of the floor collapsed.
The incident is the second at a Spanish hotel in as many days.
The first of these occurred on Easter Sunday when the roof of a hotel restaurant collapsed in Benidorm.
The sound of the ceiling collapsing in the restaurant of the Poseidon Palace hotel was so loud that even people in the swimming pool heard it.
Holidaymakers expressed their horror at the incident in which at least seven people, including a boy, were injured.
But they said the situation could have been much worse the day before as the restaurant was packed with 400 people leaving on Saturday.
One of them said: “It was a very tense moment. We had just arrived to eat and people were running away in terror before they knew what was happening.”
The incident, which is still under investigation, occurred just after 2pm on Easter Sunday. The restaurant’s ceiling collapsed, sending a large amount of debris, drywall, broken glass, and even parts of the air conditioner falling to the floor.
The ages of the injured were between 30 and 80. An 8-year-old boy and another 78-year-old tourist were treated at the scene.
While the nationalities of the injured were not disclosed, all those hospitalized were discharged.
The company’s hotel says an in-depth review of the installation has been carried out pending a technical report from the municipal architect.
The dining room of Poseidon’s Palace is closed and guests use the adjacent hotel restaurant.
Tourists said it was a big scare and they were glad the restaurant wasn’t full.
One of those affected fainted due to tension or a previous pathology, but the man immediately regained consciousness.
“There was no blood, everything was bruised,” said Pere Joan Devesa, general manager of Poseidon Hotels, who confirmed that the cause had not yet been determined.
A thorough inspection of the entire drywall installation is performed.
A couple from Murcia said they were at the pool when the incident occurred. “There was a lot of noise and people were very scared. Everything was very noticeable because firefighters, police and ambulances arrived,” they told Spanish newspaper Informaction.es.
