‘I Woke Up In A Cloud Of Smoke, I Feel Lucky To Have Escaped’: Sliema Fire Survivor Speaks Out
Lovin Malta spoke to one of the tenants that escaped last night’s fire. In order to protect their privacy we are using a fictitious name.
One of the survivors from the Qui-Si-Sana apartment fire spoke out after his third-floor apartment went up in flames just after midnight on 24th June describing how he “woke up in a cloud of smoke” and how he feels “very lucky to have escaped.”
A fire broke out in an apartment on Qui-Si-Sana Road in the early hours of this morning, prompting a swift response from emergency services. Some individuals were treated on site for smoke inhalation and police confirmed that no one was hospitalised. However, the ordeal was deeply traumatic for residents of the block.
Sam was sleeping when the fire broke out, he woke up in a cloud of smoke, confused and panicked for the safety of his flatmates. He quickly managed to crack open a window and get to the balcony from which he saw his flatmates on the street below. His flatmates then went into the common area to guide him out of the building, he followed their voice and he safely found his way out.
“I’m very lucky to have escaped, if I had taken the wrong turn, I might not have made it,” Sam explained.
“Most of my colleagues were very proactive as they switched off the air conditioner that started to spark and got out of the building.” The fire was contained to Sam’s apartment where the air conditioner caught fire.
Sam and his flatmates – who are also his colleagues – are now residing elsewhere. However, this has been a deeply traumatic experience for Sam who lives oceans away from his family in New Zealand.
“Although I called to tell them about my experience, I could not have their comfort or support as I wished to have had.”
“My flatmates and I really appreciate the emergency services who came to help but it was thanks to my flatmates’ proactivity that we all got out of there alive,” said Sam.
After he got out of the building, Sam was taken by ambulance to Mater Dei Hospital where he spent around two hours clearing his lungs from the smoke he inhaled.
“I’m very traumatised, I feel very lucky and I thank God for my survival,” Sam emotionally told Lovin Malta.
After the incident, the Sliema Local Council shared footage of the smoke and praised the Civil Protection Department, police and medical teams for their professional handling of the situation.
READ NEXT: From History To Horizon: Inspiring The Next Generation Through Art
