Husband and wife died in Spain hot tub 'after pumps malfunction left them trapped'
Investigators believe Patrick Tobin and his Irish wife, Thomasina Tobin, may have been victims of ‘suction entrapment’ after the couple were found dead in a hot tub at their rented holiday home in Spain
Patrick Tobin, 51, and his wife Thomasina, 48, died last Tuesday
A husband and wife found dead in a hot tub at their rented holiday home in Spain may have been victims of rare suction entrapment, according to Spanish media reports.
New Zealander Patrick Tobin, 51, and his Irish wife, Thomasina Tobin, 48, died at the upmarket Cap Blanc residential development in Cullera, on the Valencian coast, last Tuesday.
Their two teenage children are understood to have raised the alarm after finding their parents at around 5pm local time.
Investigators believe the hot tub’s water circulation system may have caused the couple’s deaths, according to Valencian newspaper Levante-EMV. Preliminary autopsy results from the Valencia Institute of Legal Medicine reportedly suggest they died in an unusual accident involving the suction system, in what is known as suction entrapment.
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This occurs when the drain of a swimming pool or hot tub sucks in a person’s hair, jewellery or limbs, potentially causing them to drown or suffer catastrophic injuries.
The hot tub in Villa Luna, where the couple was reportedly staying(Image: Airbnb)
Spanish police have ruled out drowning as the couple’s cause of death and instead say they suffered a “cardiopulmonary incident due to acute stress”, Levante-EMV reports.
Post-mortem examinations carried out on the couple found marks and scratches on their bodies, with the marks said to be more pronounced on Mr Tobin, according to the newspaper.
The full results of the post-mortem examinations will not be publicly released, as is standard practice in Spain. The tragedy is reported to have unfolded on the ground floor of the three-bedroom Villa Luna, where the spa was billed as a “ground-floor oasis” featuring a hot tub, television and shower area built into rock overlooking the sea.
Thomasina Tobin was director of cost management and head of hotels at Turner & Townsend
While there are no worldwide statistics on how many people die from suction entrapment – also called circulation entrapment – a 2018 report by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission highlights how rare such incidents are.
The commission said that it was aware of 11 victims of suction entrapment in incidents reportedly occurring in pools, whirlpool bathtubs and spas – which the report said is “used to refer to spas and hot tubs” – between 2013 and 2017.
Seven of the victims were involved in incidents at spas, two of whom died and five of whom were injured. More than half of the 11 victims were involved in incidents related to being caught on an outlet or cover.
Of the 11 victims, the most common was the victims’ hair becoming caught in an outlet cover (six victims), followed by limb (three victims, two of whom died) and body (two victims).
Patrick Tobin died alongside his wife, Thomasina, in Spain last Tuesday
Initial reports said both Mr and Ms Tobin were Irish, but it was later confirmed that Mr Tobin was a New Zealand citizen. The couple lived in London.
Mr Tobin was an associate general manager at the London offices of a technology company, while Ms Tobin was a quantity surveyor and senior construction industry executive who worked on some of London’s most prominent hotel developments, The Times reports.
Mr Tobin had worked for HCLTech since 2013 and was promoted to associate general manager in London in November 2021.
A spokesperson for HCLTech told the Irish Mirror that the company was “deeply saddened” by the deaths of Mr Tobin and his wife.
The tragedy happened while the couple were on holiday with their children in Cullera(Image: Getty Images)
They added: “Our thoughts are with their family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time. Out of respect to the family’s privacy, we are not in a position to comment or share any details at this point of time.”
At the time of her death, Ms Tobin was director of cost management and head of hotels at Turner & Townsend, a cost and project management consultancy.
In a statement to The Sunday Times, a spokesperson for Turner & Townsend said: “We are deeply saddened by the tragic death of Thomasina Tobin and her husband. Thomasina was a valued member of our team, and our thoughts are with her family at this incredibly difficult time. We are liaising with her family to provide support.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs previously told the Irish Mirror: “The Department is aware of this case and is providing consular assistance in the case of the Irish citizen concerned. As with all consular cases, the Department does not comment on the details of individual cases.”