Residents of three towns to the south of the Spanish capital city of Madrid were warned to stay indoors by emergency services from the Community of Madrid on Saturday as the result of a toxic cloud caused by a fire that burned 40 tonnes of magnesium and aluminum shavings.
Cause of the fire remained unknown so far. It occurred at a warehouse in an industrial estate in the town of Fuenlabrada, to the south of the Spanish capital at around 9:30 a.m. local time.
Although the fire brigade were able to stop the flames spreading beyond the site, they were unable to extinguish it rapidly.
The toxicity of the products which were burning spurred the emergency services to issue the warning for residents of the towns of Moraleja de Enmedio, Humanes and Grinon, which have a total population of around 35,000.
Meanwhile, the zone around the fire was also evacuated along with the hotel Ciudad de Fuenlabrada, which had around 80 people staying at the time of the fire, while the M506 road was also closed to traffic.
One person, described as a 47-year-old man who worked at the site, was taken to hospital with burns, while 16 fire engines worked to extinguish the flames.
