At least 22 people have been injured on the island of Tenerife when the dancefloor in a nightclub popular with British visitors suddenly collapsed, plunging revellers 20 feet into a basement.
Two of the victims – aged 20 to 59 – were said to be seriously hurt, with injuries including broken legs, fractures and cuts.
The Butterfly Disco Pub in Playa de las Americas was said to have been full of tourists when the floor gave way at 2.30 this morning in the city of Adeje in the south of the island.
Videos shared on social media show club-goers fleeing from the venue clutching their faces as they struggled to breathe, apparently because of dust thrown up by rubble.
Emergency services rushed to the scene and attended to the injured while several were transported to hospital, according to local media reports.
The two victims reported to be seriously hurt had suffered broken legs. Others ended up with broken bones and other injuries while 14 were said to have had minor injuries, Spanish news site La Vanguardia reported.
Footage showed firefighters later combing through the wreckage, with a massive hole in floor of the club where a drop can be seen below.
One blogger who filmed himself near the disaster after the floor collapsed told how the situation was “grave”.
Bolorino said: “I was in a club near the Butterfly called the Papagayo when I took a call from a friend there saying 'Please come and help me'.
“The disco collapsed and there was a lot of people injured. A lot of people taken to hospital. A lot of police.
“It collapsed when people were dancing. And a day of fiesta like today, a Saturday. It’s grave.”
A man who answered a phone number listed for the Butterfly Disco Pub when The Independent called declined to comment or give his name.
He said: “At the moment I can’t say anything, I’m sorry. I cannot inform you of anything. There are inspections going on here.”
Police and firefighters have cordoned off the nightclub and are currently combing through the debris looking for clues as to how the dancefloor collapsed, according to local reports.
A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office was not aware if any British nationals were hurt.
