A 15-month-old baby and several children are among more than 100 holidaymakers who have fallen ill with suspected salmonella poisoning at a hotel in Costa Calida, Spain. The affected youngsters were among around 20 people taken to hospital following the outbreak at the four-star Izan Cavanna Hotel in the popular resort of La Manga, near Murcia.

A field hospital was also set up at the seafront hotel after guests began suffering symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and, in some cases, fever following Saturday lunch. Initially, authorities reported 28 cases, but by yesterday the number of people with health problems had risen to more than 100 of the 800 guests believed to be staying at the hotel. The baby and children among the patients were taken to Santa Lucia Hospital in the nearby city of Cartagena, some suffering fevers and dehydration.

Health inspectors have collected samples from the hotel kitchen, which has now been closed, as part of an ongoing investigation. Regional health authorities said overnight that they were treating the incident as a probable Salmonella outbreak.

It is not yet clear how many British and Irish tourists were among those affected. The hotel describes itself online as one of the most emblematic resorts on Spain’s Costa Calida. Its buffet restaurant is now under investigation, and other hotel facilities including a beach bar, restaurant and an English-style pub have temporarily closed.

Despite the outbreak, the hotel published a Facebook post early yesterday promoting cocktails and mojitos, without mentioning the health scare.

One Spanish guest, still staying at the hotel, posted online: “I am in room 826. Yesterday more than 40 people were affected by food poisoning from a spoiled buffet dish.

"My wife, who is eight months pregnant, was admitted to Santa Lucía Hospital. I left the hotel at 4.30am on Sunday and notified the hotel at 9am about the seriousness of the situation. It is now 2.20pm and no one has called us. Our belongings are still in the room, and I cannot get through to anyone.”

Several guests have suggested a fish dish or a spinach-filled pasta served at the buffet on Saturday could be to blame, though officials have not confirmed the source of contamination.

Video footage showed multiple ambulances arriving throughout Saturday afternoon, with some patients receiving rehydration drips in their rooms and others lying on stretchers in hotel corridors.

A Spanish mother, identified only as Susan, said: “The hospital discharged my 15-year-old daughter while she was still weak, dizzy and suffering from fever and dehydration. She was worse than before. We believe it was the sauce she had with her spinach ravioli at lunch that made her ill.”

Another guest reported: “My friend became unwell after lunch and had a stomach ache through dinner, so she only ate yoghurt. We think it was something to do with the fish, as the other three of us who didn’t eat it were fine.”

Several families with children have reportedly left the hotel early after registering formal complaints at reception. New arrivals on Sunday said they were not informed of the outbreak and had already eaten at the buffet before it was closed.

Salmonella infection usually causes sudden diarrhoea, fever and abdominal cramps within six hours to six days of exposure and can last up to a week. In more severe cases, symptoms may include bloody diarrhoea or high fever, sometimes requiring hospital treatment. Rare complications can occur if the infection spreads to the bloodstream, potentially causing long-term issues such as reactive arthritis.

The hotel has yet to release an official statement on Instagram, Facebook or its website. Its website still advertises its buffet as offering “a wide and tempting selection of dishes from our healthy Mediterranean cuisine, as well as products and dishes representative of other European cuisines.”