Husband electrocuted ‘trying to rescue wife’ as horrific details emerge on tragic hot tub accident
A husband was electrocuted as he was 'trying to rescue' his wife from a hot tub during a tragic incident.
Patrick and Thomasina Tobin had been on holiday in Cullera in Valencia with their two children, one aged 16 and 14.
On August 25 the two children found their parents after the tragedy, and the couple's loved ones have been looking for answers about their sudden and tragic deaths.
A coroner in Spain has now said that the most likely cause of death for Patrick and Thomasina was electrocution, the Daily Mail reports.
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It has come after several theories were put forward about the tragedy, including overheating, drowning, and chemical poisoning.
Initial autopsy results have been reported in local media as indicating that both of the couple died from cardiopulmonary arrest.
A friend of the family has said that one of them was in the hot tub when they were found, while the other was next to it.
After finding their parents the two children called a family member before being able to find a neighbour, who phoned the emergency services. The couple were declared dead at the scene.
The two children, who are understood to currently being cared for by family in London, were looked after Spanish Red Cross and Cullera City Council, and offered support by psychologists.
Preliminary evidence from the scene indicated that Patrick had been coming to help Thomasina when he was fatally injured, and that his wet arms had been ‘acting like a conductor for the electrical current’.
Both of them were found with scratch marks on their bodies as well.
One theory suggests that Thomasina had gotten into difficulty in the water, which in turn prompted Patrick to come to her aid.
"There was total confusion about how such an awful thing could have happened, and to some extent there still is," said a family friend.
"The police said it was some sort of accident, but we could not figure out how this could have happened and taken both of their lives."
They added: "The assumption is that Paddy was trying to drag Thomasina out. She was really small, but he was still wet and was then electrocuted himself."
Loved ones of the couple are now waiting to see if there will be any further action to answer questions about what had happened.
"Of course this should never have happened, so I am sure there will be further action in the future,’ the friend said.
They went on to clarify that although there is still not yet a 'clear picture' about what happened electrocution seems ‘more plausible' than some other theories which have been put forward.
Thomasina was born and raised in Co Monaghan, Ireland, while Patrick was from New Zealand, with the pair living in London together.
Patrick had only recently been given a promotion at the London division of technology company HCLTech, and Thomasina had been working for luxury hotels as a quantity surveyor.
The family had booked a holiday in Valencia for a little over two weeks before their two children were due to go back to school.
They had been on the holiday for just two days when the tragedy occurred.
Topics: UK News, World News, Health
Kit Roberts