Sabotage at Ta' Kandja

Thousands of people in the south were left without water yesterday after Ta' Kandja pumping station, in the limits of Siggiewi, was sabotaged and the water contaminated with a petroleum mixture.

It is the first such incident of sabotage on the island's water system, though in 1987 there was an attempt to damage the water supply infrastructure at the Siggiewi reverse osmosis plant.

A magisterial inquiry is now underway to try and track down the person who sliced the rubber pipe leading to a tank of chlorine, used to disinfect the water, and instead attached it to a 20-litre jerrycan full of petroleum mixture.

Fifteen litres of the mixture - five litres were discovered still in the jerrycan - were drawn into the underground water sump which supplies water to the Qrendi reservoir.

The cost of the damage and its aftermath has not yet been established.

At a joint news conference, Water Services Corporation chief executive Anthony Rizzo and chairman Michael Falzon assured the public that initial tests on samples taken from the Qrendi reservoir have shown the water there to be clear of contamination.

"Obviously we took no chances and the second we became aware of the situation we shut down the reservoir's supply, which reaches about 25 localities," Mr Falzon said.

Mr Rizzo said they were informed of the sabotage, which took place in the station's chlorination room, at 9.30 a.m.

He explained that this room was always kept open because of the chlorine's toxic fumes, so anybody could have jumped over the boundary wall and entered with ease.

"Whoever committed this crime knew exactly how the water system works and what to go for. All I can say is that we have not received any threats and are not aware of any particular incident which may have led to this," Mr Rizzo said.

The WSC had never before felt any particular need for overnight security on the grounds of Ta' Kandja, where 10 people are employed in all.

The police yesterday carried out the normal process of interrogation among the workers and scoured the area in search of any clues that may lead them to whoever is responsible.

The WSC was also working round the clock in an attempt to get the water supply from the reservior back to normal.

Bowsers drew out over 20,000 gallons of water from the infected water sump and disposed of it in the drainage system - the quantity of petroleum mixture is minor and will not be a contaminant.

From preliminary results it seems that the bulk of the mixture remained in the water sump at Ta' Kandja and absorbent material was put in to soak up the substance.

Even if some petroleum had somehow made it to people's households - the worst-case scenario - then it would have been so diluted that there would be absolutely negligible harm, Mr Rizzo said.

Once the petroleum has been cleared from the sump checks have to be carried out to ensure that the substance has not seeped into the walls of the sump.

Both Mr Rizzo and Mr Falzon said the WSC would be taking all the necessary precautions when it came to security.

The Malta Resources Authority and the Health Department have been informed.