Postmortem results have revealed that an Irish couple found dead in a Spanish hot tub suffered fatal cardiac arrests after becoming trapped by the tub’s suction force.
Thomasina Tobin, 45, and her husband Patrick Tobin, 50, who lived in London but were originally from Ireland, were discovered by their teenage children on August 25 during a two-week vacation in the luxury Cap Blanc area near Cullera, about 25 miles south of Valencia. The Guardia Civil initially called in homicide detectives to rule out foul play, but investigators now believe the deaths were accidental.
According to Spanish newspaper Las Provincias, which joined the investigation, the couple became imprisoned by excessive suction force inside the bathtub. “According to the first investigations, the excessive suction force would have imprisoned the couple inside the bathtub, which triggered a situation of extreme anguish and desperate physical effort to free themselves from the hydraulic grip,” the paper reported. Hot tub industry experts were brought in to assist the Guardia Civil in examining the scene.
“The autopsy findings almost definitively reinforce the theory of accidental entrapment,” Las Provincias continued. “Preliminary analyses indicate that the victims suffered cardiac arrest brought on by acute stress following physical exhaustion and the desperation of the moment.”
Scratches found on both bodies were determined to be from each other as they tried to save one another, not from any third-party involvement. One theory investigators considered was that one spouse may have been electrocuted, with the other dying during rescue attempts. Another possibility examined was that physical exhaustion from struggling to escape the hydraulic grip triggered heart attacks in both victims.
Thomasina came from a prominent family in Castleblayney, County Monaghan, in the Republic of Ireland. Her father, Tommy McArdle, is a well-known playwright, actor, and producer who spent several years directing the popular Irish soap opera Glenroe.
The Department of Foreign Affairs in Ireland confirmed its involvement in the case. “The Department is aware of this case and is providing consular assistance in the case of the Irish citizen concerned,” a spokesperson told the Irish Mirror. “As with all consular cases, the Department does not comment on the details of individual cases.”
The couple had been staying in the upscale coastal development for their holiday before the tragedy unfolded. Their children found them in the hot tub after the bodies had reportedly lain undiscovered for approximately 12 hours.