British child sucked into pool skimmer at resort

A five-year-old British boy had to be rescued on Sunday afternoon, 1st June, after his arm got sucked into a pool skimmer at the Zafiro Hotel in Can Picafort. The incident happened around 5.50pm and left guests in shock.

The child had put his arm into the suction hole – part of the pool’s cleaning system – which had no safety grill. The vacuum effect pulled his arm in and trapped it up to the elbow, according to local police.

Emergency crews rushed to the scene, including Santa Margalida Local Police, Guardia Civil, Mallorca’s fire brigade and medics from SAMU 061. When the firefighters arrived, paramedics were already there but couldn’t free the boy, so they had to drain the pool and carefully break through the surrounding floor using pneumatic tools to reach the “T”-shaped pipe where the boy’s arm was stuck.

It was a tense scene, with onlookers gathering around the pool. Firefighters acted with extreme care – giving the boy a helmet and earplugs before cutting into the pipe with a grinder. After more than 30 minutes of delicate work, they managed to free him. He was then taken to hospital with his arm immobilised for further checks.

Guests at the hotel watched the dramatic rescue unfold, visibly distressed.

Once the situation was under control, police questioned the hotel’s lifeguards. One admitted he had already reported issues with the suction system to reception, and claimed the only “solution” so far had been to insert a screw – which apparently comes loose frequently. The second lifeguard also admitted he was aware of the problem, which had never been properly sorted.

Warnings ignored earlier that day

Adding to the frustration, a British holidaymaker told police he had raised concerns earlier the same day. He said he noticed strong suction and no grill on the skimmer around midday and alerted the lifeguards, who checked it but “didn’t do anything about it”.

The boy and his family had been staying at the hotel since Tuesday, 27th May.

The police report has now been passed on to the courts, and an investigation is underway to determine whether there was negligence in the management of pool safety at the hotel.

Zafiro Hotel was also hit by fire earlier this year

This isn’t the first time the Zafiro Hotel has made headlines. Back in February, a major fire broke out on the premises while construction work was underway to prepare for the upcoming tourist season.

Workers were installing a waterproofing membrane on a rooftop when the fire started, though the exact cause is still unknown. The flames quickly spread and caused extensive damage, particularly to the hotel’s new dining area and roof. A massive column of smoke was visible across much of Can Picafort.

Luckily, there were no injuries at the time, but the Guardia Civil launched an investigation into the fire to determine any possible liabilities.

Another 5-year-old boy nearly drowns

Another five-year-old British boy had a lucky escape after nearly drowning in the pool of a hotel in Santa Ponça on Friday, 30 May. Quick-thinking lifeguards were on the scene in seconds and managed to save his life.

Out of nowhere, the boy got into the pool and quickly started showing signs of drowning.

Lifeguards from the hotel reacted immediately, pulling the child out of the water and starting CPR right away. Thankfully, their efforts paid off and the boy eventually came round, according to police.

Stay tuned with Euro Weekly News for the latest news about Europe and Mallorca.