Malta woke up on Monday morning to the sound of a massive explosion, followed by a number of successive explosions inside a fireworks factory, which sparked a widespread state of alert and left a huge cloud of smoke visible from long distances, while the authorities rushed to open an investigation to uncover the circumstances of the accident.
The explosion occurred in the early hours of Monday morning inside the Ta’ Lourdes fireworks factory in the Magtab area of Malta, where thick clouds of white and gray smoke rose, covering the sky of the region and could be seen from several neighboring towns.
A police spokesman said that there were still no indications of injuries inside the factory itself, but fire and rescue teams continued combing and searching in the vicinity of the site for hours after the explosion to ensure that there were no stranded or injured people.
The accident resulted in two men working in nearby agricultural fields being injured by shrapnel resulting from the force of the explosion, and they were taken to the hospital to receive treatment. The two injured people are 67 and 47 years old, and they underwent treatment due to the state of shock they were exposed to.
The explosion occurred at approximately 6:25 a.m. local time, while residents of a number of towns reported that their homes were shaken by the intensity of the explosion. The plume of smoke was clearly visible from different areas, including Naksar and Ghatab.
A spokesman for the Malta Civil Defense Department confirmed that the explosion occurred at a fireworks factory in the Salini area, noting that emergency services had received information indicating the possibility of people being inside the site during the explosion, but this information is still being verified.
Following the accident, the authorities appointed a special judge to supervise the investigation that was opened to uncover the causes of the explosion and determine its circumstances, while the rescue teams and specialized agencies continue to collect data from the accident site.
The accident brings to the forefront the risks associated with the manufacture and storage of fireworks, pending what official investigations will reveal regarding the real reasons behind the explosion that shook the island and caused widespread concern among the population.
