More than 160,000 residents in five municipalities of Catalonia, Spain, have been advised to remain indoors due to a toxic chlorine cloud resulting from a fire at an industrial depot.
The Civil Protection agency urged people via social media not to leave their homes or workplaces if they are in the affected area.
The impacted areas are located along the coast, situated between Barcelona and Tarragona.
Firefighters stated on social media platform X that so far, no injuries have been reported and significant resources have been deployed to control the blaze.
The fire broke out early Saturday morning at a warehouse storing pool chemicals in the municipality of Vilanova i la Geltrú, producing the toxic chlorine cloud, according to the firefighters.
By Saturday morning, firefighters announced they had controlled the fire but were monitoring the cloud to track its movement and toxicity levels.
“The ignition of chlorine is rare, but once it burns, it’s very difficult to extinguish,” said the depot’s owner, Jorge Viñuales Alonso, speaking to the radio.
