CASTILLA-LA MANCHA – A 15-year-old girl died and several other youngsters were admitted to hospital in the town of Azuqueca de Henares in Guadalajara.
As reported by Nacho Abad, a Spanish journalist and criminologist, her parents were alerted when their daughter did not return home at the agreed time of 10.00 pm. They were worried and began to call her mobile. The phone was ringing out, but not being answered. The parents then went to the Guardia Civil to register her missing.
Abandoned building
By midnight, the police were able to track the location of her mobile phone. They rushed to the scene of an abandoned building that was previously a bar. When they looked through the windows, they could see there were people inside on the ground.
They broke down the door to enter and found unconscious seven minors. The emergency services were alerted. Meanwhile, the Guardia Civil officers with the assistance of firefighters began to bring the children out into the street to resuscitate them. The children were all aged between 14 and 17.
Carbon monoxide
Ambulances began to arrive and continued to treat the teenagers. However, the 15-year-old girl could not be revived and died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Another was transferred to a hospital in Madrid in a serious condition. Four others were also admitted to hospital. Two of the emergency service crew were also admitted but later released.
One child regained consciousness. But when the police started asking questions, he declined to answer.
According to Abad´s report, “initial investigations indicate that inside the premises there was a generator powered by fuel and that someone had made an “arrangement” with a garden hose, to carry the combustion gases to the outside via a window. However, the connection was not made correctly, and the room was filled with carbon monoxide. This was the cause of the poisoning.
Town Mayor
José Luis Blanco, Mayor of Azuqueca de Henares tweeted the following; “I am shocked by what happened in Azuqueca. At the moment, I only have limited information. My deepest condolences to the victim´s relatives, my affection for those affected, and my gratitude to the FFCCSE and the health workers for preventing the tragedy from being greater.
In another tweet, he reiterated that he was still in awe of what happened and that his thoughts were with the families and those affected.
Os dejo una de las entrevistas que he concedido sobre el terrible incidente que tuvo lugar la noche de Halloween en #Azuqueca. Sigo sobrecogido con lo ocurrido, y de nuevo quiero mandarle todo mi cariño y afecto a las afectados y a sus familias.https://t.co/qCBKtcmwqg
— José Luis Blanco (@JL_Blanco) November 1, 2021
He also posted a recording of an interview (in Spanish) he did regarding the tragic incident.
