‘Unpleasant smell’ at bank leaves man hospitalised and nine others ill

Fire crews helped ventilate the Santander branch in Nuneaton after staff reported ‘presence of hazardous gas’

A man has been hospitalised after several customers fell ill following reports of an “unpleasant smell” at a bank in Warwickshire.

The Nuneaton branch of Santander in Nuneaton was closed just after midday on Tuesday following the reports, with three ambulances and West Midlands Ambulance Service’s Hazardous Area Response Team attending the scene.

“Numerous” people reported feeling unwell after reports of a hazardous substance, with nine other patients assessed and discharged alongside the hospitalised man following the “potential safety issue”.

The Nuneaton branch of Santander was closed just after midday on Tuesday (Google/screengrab)

Fire crews attended the scene to help ventilate the branch after staff reported the “presence of hazardous gas and an unpleasant smell throughout” the building. Nuneaton and Bedworth Police cordoned off a stretch of the street while officers responded to the incident.

“Crews arrived to find ten patients complaining of feeling unwell”, a statement from a West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesperson read.

“One of them, a man, was assessed and treated at the scene before being taken to George Eliot Hospital in a stable condition.

“The remaining nine patients, six women and three men, were assessed and discharged at the scene.”

"During routine works at our Nuneaton branch earlier today a potential safety issue was detected and as a precaution, the branch was closed”, a Santander spokesperson told the BBC.

"We are sorry for any inconvenience this causes our customers."