German tourists found unconscious in Mallorca hotel room after carbon monoxide leak

A hotel room should be the safest place on holiday, somewhere you can shut the door and switch off from everything outside. For two German tourists in Mallorca, however, their room became a potentially deadly trap when both were found unconscious after being poisoned by carbon monoxide. The women, aged 34 and 42, were discovered shortly before midnight on Saturday at the Ahoi Urban Beach hotel in Playa de Palma.

Both were taken to Son Llàtzer Hospital in serious condition and one was later treated in a hyperbaric chamber. They are now stable and out of danger. The incident has raised particular concern because there had reportedly been problems with the room before the women were found. Guests who had previously stayed there complained of throat irritation and were moved to another room, while the two German tourists had also raised concerns about problems in their room earlier that day.

Friends raise the alarm

The issue came to light after the women’s friends became concerned when they could no longer get hold of them. Their phones were ringing but neither tourist was answering, so the friends went to the hotel and asked staff for help. The room was eventually opened and the two women were found unconscious inside.

Emergency services were called shortly before midnight, bringing police, firefighters and medical teams to the hotel. The women received emergency treatment at the scene before being taken to hospital. Their condition was initially described as serious, with one requiring treatment in a hyperbaric chamber because of the effects of the poisoning.

Hotel evacuated after carbon monoxide detected

Firefighters detected carbon monoxide inside the building and evacuated around 25 people while they ventilated the hotel and checked the premises. A 39-year-old hotel employee was also affected by the gas. His poisoning was described as mild and he did not require hospital treatment.

Guests were allowed to return once the building had been ventilated and the immediate danger had been removed, although areas close to the suspected source remained closed while further checks were carried out. Carbon monoxide is particularly dangerous because it is colourless and odourless. People can be exposed without realising there is a problem, with symptoms potentially progressing from headaches, dizziness and nausea to confusion, loss of consciousness and death at high concentrations.

Source of gas remains under investigation

Investigators have not yet established exactly how the carbon monoxide entered the hotel room. Initial enquiries have focused on a possible fault involving the hotel’s hot-water boiler or a combustion problem, with investigators also examining whether fumes could have travelled through ventilation ducts.

Other early reports have raised the possibility of a problem with a kitchen extraction system, so the precise source has not been confirmed. The Policía Nacional is investigating the circumstances, including the source of the carbon monoxide and whether it was connected to the problems previously reported in the room.

Previous Complaints

The earlier complaints suggest that the two tourists were not the first people to experience something unusual in the room. Guests who had stayed there previously reportedly suffered throat irritation and were moved, while the German women had raised concerns themselves before they were found unconscious.

The two tourists are now recovering in hospital and are reported to be out of danger. The investigation will determine what caused the dangerous build-up of carbon monoxide and whether the earlier warnings were linked to the incident.