‘The Wall Just Started Falling Down’ – Another Building Collapses With Residents Inside, This Time In Ħamrun
Yet another building collapsed in Malta this morning, this time on Mimosa Street, Ħamrun. The third-party wall of a neighbouring house in a construction site was torn out during works, making this the third major accident following an entire block of apartments in Gwardamanġa and Mellieħa in the last two months alone.
Four families lived in the block. One had children, and one was in a wheelchair. Police and members of the Civil Protection were called in, and the residents were evacuated.
“I was walking in the kitchen this morning when I started hearing a loud noise,” one resident who was inside when the incident happened told Lovin Malta. “The wall then just started falling down. I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it happened. I called my son, ran out, and we called the police.”
The resident’s son was asleep at the time of the incident. Coming back home from a late shift, the man called his son and the two ran outside
“All I want is justice,” the man’s son said.
“We had told them to be careful when using heavy equipment because the building is old, but they told us they would use different machinery.”
“We like to talk on television and make a big show when something like this happens, but nothing ever gets done,” the resident continues. “No one really cares until it happens to them. It will continue happening. What happened to me will happen to someone else.”
“And all of this for a block of fifteen flats, five penthouses and shops,” another resident of the block said.
One resident said they had felt a series of tremors just one month ago
“Our architect warned us that the way they were developed meant that the building was becoming unsafe,” one resident said after she had felt a series of tremors in the block.
This had happened back on 10th May, and the woman had even uploaded a video shouting at the workers.
“They said I was exaggerating a month ago,” a neighbour who was living with her mother and her seven-year-old daughter told Lovin Malta. “Now look at what happened.”
The incident comes on the day that industry stakeholders are scheduled to meet the Prime Minister to discuss safety measures that could avert similar incidents, but the architect involved reportedly said works have been ongoing for two months and proper procedures had been followed.
This is a developing story.
