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The Guardian
10-05-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
Toxic chlorine cloud near Barcelona confines more than 160,000 indoors
Spanish authorities have told more than 160,000 people near Barcelona to stay indoors after a fire at an industrial warehouse released a toxic cloud of chlorine over a wide area. The blaze, in the coastal city of Vilanova i la Geltrú, south of Barcelona, started at dawn on Saturday in a warehouse storing pool cleaning products, the regional fire service said. 'If you are in the zone that is affected do not leave your home or your place of work,' the Civil Protection Service said on social media. It advised people to keep doors and windows closed in the at-risk area, which stretched across five local districts along the coast, from Vilanova i la Geltrú to the village of Calafell, near Tarragona. No casualties had been reported so far, the fire service said on X, adding that it had deployed a large number of units to bring the fire under control. It said it was 'monitoring the column [of gas] caused by the blaze for changes and for its toxic levels'. The authorities closed roads in the area and shut train stations to prevent people approaching the affected area. 'It is very difficult for chlorine to catch fire but when it does so it is very hard to put it out,' the warehouse owner Jorge Vinuales Alonso told local radio station Rac1. He said the fire may have been caused by a lithium battery. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion The mayor of Vilanova, Juan Luis Ruiz López, told the public TV station TVE that now the fire had been extinguished the authorities expected 'this toxic cloud will start to dissipate and we can lift the measures currently imposed'.
Asharq Al-Awsat
10-05-2025
- Climate
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Toxic Cloud Forces 160,000 Spaniards to Stay Inside after Fire
Around 160,000 people in Spain's northeastern Catalonia region were warned to stay inside on Saturday after a fire at an industrial estate caused a toxic cloud of chlorine over a wide area, emergency services said. The blaze at a swimming pool cleaning products company started at 2.20 a.m. (0020 GMT) in Vilanova i la Geltru, a town 48 kilometers (30 miles) south of Barcelona and caused a huge plume of chlorine smoke over the area. "If you are in the zone that is affected do not leave your home or your place of work," the Civil Protection service said on social media site X. No one has been hurt in the fire, Catalan emergency services said on Saturday, but residents in five towns were sent a message on their mobile phones telling them to remain inside. "It is very difficult for chlorine to catch fire but when it does so it is very hard to put it out," the owner of the industrial property, Jorge Vinuales Alonso, told local radio station Rac1. He said the cause of the fire might have been a lithium battery. Trains which were due to pass through the area were held up, roads were blocked and other events were cancelled. The fire was under control, Civil Protection spokesperson Joan Ramon Cabello told the TVE television channel.
CNN
10-05-2025
- Climate
- CNN
Toxic cloud forces 160,000 Spaniards to stay inside after fire
Around 160,000 people in Spain's northeastern Catalonia region were warned to stay inside on Saturday after a fire at an industrial estate caused a toxic cloud of chlorine over a wide area, emergency services said. The blaze at a swimming pool cleaning products company started at 2.20 a.m. local time (8:20 p.m. Friday ET) in Vilanova i la Geltru, a town 48 kilometers (30 miles) south of Barcelona and caused a huge plume of chlorine smoke over the area. 'If you are in the zone that is affected do not leave your home or your place of work,' the Civil Protection service said on social media site X. No one has been hurt in the fire, Catalan emergency services said on Saturday, but residents in five towns were sent a message on their mobile phones telling them to remain inside. 'It is very difficult for chlorine to catch fire but when it does so it is very hard to put it out,' the owner of the industrial property, Jorge Vinuales Alonso, told local radio station Rac1. He said the cause of the fire might have been a lithium battery. Trains which were due to pass through the area were held up, roads were blocked and other events were canceled. The fire was under control, Civil Protection spokesperson Joan Ramon Cabello told the TVE television channel.
The Sun
10-05-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
Tourists in Spanish holiday hotspot ordered to stay indoors as fire at chemical plant releases toxic cloud into air
TOURISTS in a string of Spanish beach resorts were told to stay indoors today after a huge fire at a chemical plant sent a toxic chlorine cloud billowing over the area. Holidaymakers in five popular towns near Barcelona were among 160,000 people ordered to shut their windows and stay inside as emergency services scrambled to contain the blaze. 5 5 5 The fire broke out at around 2.30am local time at a factory storing 70 tons of swimming pool cleaning chemicals in the seaside town of Vilanova i la Geltru, just 25 miles south of the Catalan capital. The blaze caused a massive chlorine smoke plyme to spread across a wide area, triggering an emergency lockdown across Vilanova i la Geltru, Cubelles, Les Roquetes de Sant Pere de Ribes, Cunit and Calafell. In a stark warning on social media, Spain's Civil Protection service said: "If you are in the affected area, don't leave your house or your place or work. "An alert will be sent to mobile phones to inform people about the lockdown." They added: "Don't travel to the affected areas." is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video. Like us on Facebook at and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun. 5 5
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Thousands confined indoors by toxic chlorine cloud in Spain
Spanish authorities told more than 160,000 people near Barcelona to stay indoors on Saturday after a fire at an industrial warehouse released a toxic cloud of chlorine over a wide area. The blaze, in the coastal city of Vilanova i la Geltru just south of Barcelona, started at dawn on Saturday in a warehouse storing pool cleaning products, the regional fire service said. "If you are in the zone that is affected do not leave your home or your place of work," the Civil Protection service said on social media. It advised people to keep doors and windows closed in the at-risk area, which stretched across five local districts along the coast, from Vilanova i la Geltru to the village of Calafell, near Tarragona. "No casualties" had been reported so far, the fire service said on X, adding that it had deployed a large number of units to bring the fire under control. It said it was "monitoring the column (of gas) caused by the blaze for changes and for its toxic levels". The authorities closed roads in the area and shut train stations to prevent people approaching the affected area. "It is very difficult for chlorine to catch fire but when it does so it is very hard to put it out," warehouse owner Jorge Vinuales Alonso told local radio station Rac1. He said the cause of the fire might have been a lithium battery. Vilanova mayor Juan Luis Ruiz Lopez told public television TVE that authorities expected that, with the fire being put out, "this toxic cloud will start to dissipate and we can lift the measures currently imposed". du/pb/gil/rmb
