Five people were taken to hospital and two more were treated for injuries after part of a ceiling at a Benidorm hotel collapsed. The incident in the Spanish seaside resort, popular with British tourists, happened at midday local time on Easter Sunday, authorities said.

Sources said the incident unfolded during lunchtime in the restaurant area of the Posiedon hotel. The Emergency Information and Coordination Centre (CICU) said it received an emergency call at around 2:20pm regarding the partial collapse of the ceiling, with up to three ambulances sent to the scene. Workers from the Red Cross were also requested to help treat those wounded.

The health services reportedly treated five men and two women for cuts and bruises.

An eight-year-old girl and a 78-year-old man were discharged there and then but the other five injured, aged between 33 and 80, were taken to two nearby hospitals after receiving first aid at the scene.

It is currently not known what caused the plasterboard roof to collapse.

Benidorm City Council has confirmed a municipal architect has travelled to the scene to establish the possible causes and extent of the damage.

The nationality of those injured is not yet known but it is presumed they were holidaymakers.

A photo from the scene published by local outlet Informacion.es shows debris strewn across the restaurant, with broken glass on the floor and smashed chairs.

Food can be seen still on a table in the image.

According to Pere Joan Devas, general manager of Poseidon Hotels, there were about 60 people in the restaurant.

He said they were “very shocked” by the fall of part of the ceiling, which even dragged some of the ducts of the air conditioning system, with plaster falling on tables, chairs and the floor.