Toxic cloud forces 160,000 people indoors in Spain’s tourism region

A chemical fire at an industrial estate in Catalonia, Spain, has prompted authorities to issue a shelter-in-place warning for approximately 160,000 residents.

The fire, which ignited at a company specializing in swimming pool cleaning products, began around 2am local time in Vilanova i la Geltru, a town situated 48 kilometers south of Barcelona.

The blaze resulted in a substantial cloud of chlorine smoke spreading across the region, raising concerns about potential health risks. Emergency services are actively monitoring the situation and advising residents to remain indoors until further notice.

"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.