Brothers drown in barrel of Rioja: Spanish winemaker, 61, dies trying to save 60-year-old who fell in after being overcome by fumes
- Two winery workers died in a family vineyard in Lanciego, northern Spain
- Another man was hospitalized after inhaling toxic fumes
- The men were named locally as Gerardo Jubera and Felix Crespo, 60 and 61
A pair of winery workers died after one fell into a fermentation vat in Spain, and his brother-in-law also fell while trying to save him.
The men were named by local media as Gerardo Jubera and Felix Crespo, 60 and 61, of the Crespo Zabala family winery in Lanciego, northern Spain.
Mr Jubera slipped and fell into the barrel while checking the fermentation process of the wine at a warehouse on Sunday.
Mr Crespo then rushed to help him, but both men died after apparently being overwhelmed by toxic carbon dioxide fumes.
A 31-year-old man, who has not been named, was also affected by the toxic fumes and was airlifted to a nearby hospital.
Local mayor Itziar de Alava Martinez de Icaya said: “It’s something we would all do to save a family member.”
The two men died after Mr Jubera fell into a fermentation vat in northern Spain
Another man was taken to hospital after inhaling toxic fumes
The men worked at the Crespo Zabala family winery in Lanciego, northern Spain
She added that the two men were well known in the town and their deaths have left locals ‘deeply shocked’.
The region is known for its production of dark red, full-bodied Rioja wine.
The Basque Institute for Occupational Safety is investigating the deaths.
The tragedy comes just weeks after another wine-related incident in Western Europe.
Winemakers have painted the small Portuguese town of São Lourenco do Bairro red after two of the tanks accidentally spilled 2.2 million liters of red wine on a quiet street.
A fast-flowing river of red wine flowed down a steep hill in the small town, near the coast of Portugal, after two tanks at the Levira distillery suddenly collapsed.
Stunned locals watched as wine, almost enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool, flowed through the city streets.
The spill was so extensive that local officials activated an environmental alert and were forced to divert the wine to prevent it from polluting the nearby Certima River.