Thirteen people using the sauna at Napier’s Ocean Spa complex became ill after the wrong kind of oil had been applied to the sauna walls, producing dangerous vapours.
The sauna at the Napier City Council owned complex remains closed.
Thunes Cloete, Napier City Council’s executive director of community services said an “inappropriate timber oil product was purchased outside of Ocean Spa’s approved supplier channel and was applied to the sauna walls” from May 5 to May 7.
The sauna reopened on Friday, May 8 and “soon after being notified by customers of odour and health symptoms, the sauna was closed”.
“After receiving further complaints from our customers, we took a cautious approach and closed the sauna. It will now remain closed while full remediation is undertaken,” Cloete said.
