Around 30 people felt ill on the afternoon of Sunday 21 June inside the Leroy Merlin store in Marcon, in the province of Venice. The episode required the intervention of the firefighters, health personnel and law enforcement, who evacuated the shop and started investigations to clarify the causes of the incident.
According to initial reports, some customers began to experience burning eyes, respiratory discomfort and other symptoms after perceiving a strong acrid odor inside the store. For safety reasons, the store was evacuated, allowing customers and employees present at the time to leave.
In the first hours following the episode, also from the communications of the mayor of Marcon Matteo Romanello, it emerged that the causes were still to be clarified. In that initial phase, several hypotheses remained open for investigation by investigators, including the dispersion of irritants or the improper use of pepper spray.
A few hours later, the mayor provided a reassuring update on the situation. The store was reopened to the public after the checks carried out and, above all, most of the people involved were already well.
As a precaution, four people were taken to the emergency room for further checks. But there were no serious conditions and the situation soon returned under control.
What happened?
The most popular hypothesis at the moment is that it could have been a mix of detergents used during cleaning operations or a malfunction of the bathroom ventilation system, separate from that of the rest of the store. The acrid smell that would have spread throughout the rooms would have therefore caused the illnesses suffered by customers and staff.
However, this is a preliminary reconstruction, the exact causes of the episode have not yet been definitively ascertained. The authorities are completing investigations to precisely establish the origin of the odor and verify whether it was actually caused by a combination of cleaning products, a fault in the ventilation system or other factors.
