A hot tub company which manufactured the jacuzzi where a London couple were found dead outside of have said it would be ‘impossible’ for an adult to become trapped by the suction.
Patrick and Thomasina Tobin were on holiday with their two teenage children in Cullera, Valencia, when they were found dead in their villa’s spa facilities.
The couple, from Greenwich, south-east London, were meant to be preparing to travel home today.
But their bodies were found outside of the hot tub, naked, by their 14-year-old son with special needs.
Initial tests suggest both parents died after suffering cardiopulmonary arrest, with investigators theorising they died after becoming trapped in the hot tub suction.
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Both were found with scratch marks on their bodies, with Patrick’s being more pronounced. It is believed he became trapped first and Thomasina died trying to save him.
The hot tub manufacturers insist that becoming trapped in the suction is impossible.
Francisco Quero, a spa technician in the area, told the Daily Mail the motor is not strong enough to trap an adult.
He said: ‘Even if the grill, which usually protects the suction system was taken away, an adult might get stuck for a moment, they might have a bit of a scare and be left with some bruises, but that’s all.’
The CEO of Goccia Spa, which is the company where a hot tub for Villa Luna was bought and installed in 2019, said the tub at the property when the couple died was not one of theirs.
Carlos Navarro said: ‘I have visited factories all around the world and seen many different designs and it is practically impossible for something like this to happen at hot tubs installed in the home.
‘It is very improbable, but there may have been a chance that one of the holes became covered by something and blocked, causing all the suction to go through the other hole.
‘But I still don’t think this would be enough pressure for an adult to get stuck. There are security measures that cause them to switch off every 15 minutes.’
Another theory is that one parent may have suffered a heart attack after being electrocuted, due to a potential fault in the tub, with the other dying trying to save them.
Relatives are said to have flown out to Spain to support the children while the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed it was working on the case.
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