WIDOW SUES MOROCCAN HOTEL FOR £500,000 OVER HUSBAND'S SPA FIRE DEATH

Rachel Barnes has launched a High Court claim against Hotel Des Idrissides, trading as Jaal Ryad Resort Hotel in Marrakech, seeking damages exceeding £500,000 following the death of her husband Anthony Barnes in March 2023. Mr Barnes, 48, from Cambridgeshire, died in a fire at the five-star hotel's spa whilst undergoing a massage treatment as part of a business trip with colleagues. The blaze also claimed the life of a hotel employee. The hotel's operators are contesting the claim and deny that Mr Barnes' death resulted from negligence or breach of duty on their part.

According to court documents submitted by Mrs Barnes' barrister, Matthew Chapman KC, hotel staff became aware of the fire whilst Mr Barnes was receiving treatment. An inquest in the United Kingdom recorded a conclusion in October of the previous year that Mr Barnes' death was accidental after the spa became filled with thick, acrid smoke that affected visibility and hindered rescue attempts. Mr Chapman alleges the hotel company failed to install or maintain fire and smoke alarm systems, evacuation lighting and CCTV cameras in the spa, and failed to alert emergency services promptly. He further contends that the spa was constructed from materials that were not appropriately fire resistant and that an insufficient number of fire extinguishers were present.

Alistair Mackenzie, representing Hotel Des Idrissides, stated that the fire began in the spa's sauna and that hotel employees raised the alarm and attempted to extinguish it whilst evacuating guests, including Mr Barnes. A hearing for the case has not yet been scheduled. The barrister for Mrs Barnes argued that accidents of this nature do not usually occur when spa facilities are properly designed, constructed, installed, maintained and operated.