Firefighters called to hotel spa following chemical incident

Firefighters from Hightown, Fareham, Cosham, Portchester, St Mary’s and Romsey worked alongside paramedics and the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) from South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) last night (Monday 23 August), following a hazardous materials incident at a hotel in Whiteley.

Crews were called at 20:44 following reports that a number of hotel guests had been overcome by fumes in the spa area after two chemicals had accidentally been mixed together and created chlorine gas.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service (HIWFRS) began immediate emergency care, set up a casualty handling area, and requested the ambulance service to attend.

A ventilation fan was used to clear the fumes and firefighters took the vessel containing chemicals to fresh air.

Gas monitors were used to check that the scene was safe.

In total, 24 people were taken to hospital by ambulance crews.

Station Manager, Dave Graham, said: “This was a large-scale incident with multiple people requiring medical treatment for the inhalation of gas.

“We worked well alongside our colleagues from SCAS and SCAS HART to make sure that everyone received the help they needed and to ensure that the scene was made safe.

“We handed the incident over to the hotel management.”

The stop message was received at 01:27.