Three dead, including uncle and nephew, while trying to rescue man who fell into pig farm manure pit

Three dead, including uncle and nephew, while trying to rescue a person who fell into a manure pit at a pig farm

November 5

Three people who tried to rescue a person who had fallen into an animal waste pit at a pig farm in Spain died after inhaling toxic gas and suffocating, it is reported.

The incident occurred on November 4 at a pig farm near the town of Pitillas, about 30 miles south of the city of Pamplona, and by the time rescue teams arrived, all three were already dead.

The deceased were the 61-year-old farm owner, his 37-year-old nephew and a 33-year-old worker, local police confirmed.

According to the police's initial assessment, one of the three fell into the manure pit and the other two died after inhaling toxic gases while trying to climb down to rescue them.

All three of the deceased were residents of the nearby town of Caparroso, and the mayor of Pitillas is said to be considering designating a period of mourning.

The current incident is also the worst farm accident in Spain since an incident in 2003 in the Murcia region in which four family members died after inhaling toxic gas.

Experts say pits where animal waste is collected are poorly ventilated, and the fermentation of manure and urine can cause oxygen levels to drop rapidly, while the gases released are odorless and therefore extremely dangerous.

A similar incident occurred in England in 2022. At a dairy farm in the Cheshire area, a 42-year-old son went down into a slurry tank to repair a pipe and suffocated, and his 72-year-old father went down to rescue him, and both father and son lost their lives.

Ref & Photo: The Sun

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