A LONDON-BASED couple who were found dead in a luxury hot tub in Valencia have been named as police investigate a suspected toxic gas leak and freak accident.
Tomasina McArdle, 45, and her husband Patrick Tobin, 50, were discovered by their teenage sons on Tuesday afternoon at their rented holiday villa in Cullera, a coastal town south of Valencia city.
McArdle originally hailed from a wealthy family in Castleblaney, County Monaghan, while Tobin was a New Zealand native who had lived in the UK for 26 years.
The couple had been living and working in London for over a decade and were holidaying at the Villa Luna property in the exclusive Cap Blanc residential estate.
The Guardia Civil has ruled out third-party involvement after inspecting security camera footage and finding no signs of forced entry.
Investigators are now focusing on a possible chemical leak or mechanical fault that may have triggered a lethal chain of events.
The couple’s bodies were found naked on the floor beside the jacuzzi, which contained cloudy water and emitted a strong chemical smell.
Detectives suspect McArdle may have slipped or suffered a sudden medical issue while climbing out of the water, leaving slight blood traces and scratches matching minor puncture wounds.
READ MORE: Bodies of Irish couple are found by their children in Valencia villa
Tobin is believed to have collapsed beside her while attempting to pull her out of the hot tub.
Experts are investigating whether the pair suffered a rapid circulatory collapse caused by inhaling toxic gas or chemical fumes from the jacuzzi, such as excess chlorine or hydrochloric acid.
This reaction, sometimes called a ‘sweet death’, causes victims to lose consciousness rapidly without feeling suffocated, which would explain why they were unable to cry out for help.
The victims’ two sons, aged 14 and 16, were inside the multi-storey hilltop property but heard no screams.
The traumatised boys, who have special needs, discovered their parents after searching the villa room by room.
They immediately phoned the villa’s landlord, believed to be a Polish national, who then contacted the 112 emergency services.
A woman staying in a neighbouring holiday villa recalled the tragic scene to the Irish press.
“My son, who is a nurse, went over to ask if he could help with anything, but they told him, ‘There’s nothing to be done’,” she said.
Three relatives flew in from Ireland overnight to take care of the teenagers, who are receiving psychological support from the Red Cross and Cullera municipal social services.
The family had rented the exclusive property until September 6.
A secrecy order remains in place over the judicial case as police forensic teams carry out a second inspection of the jacuzzi.
Tissue and fluid samples have been sent to the National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences in Barcelona to determine the exact cause of death.
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