Fire engulfs importers' warehouse

A warehouse in Sta Venera belonging to Francis Busuttil & Sons Co. Ltd was yesterday destroyed in a fire that raged on for some four hours before being brought under control.

Although no one was badly injured, several fire fighters had to be treated for heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation and minor burns.

The heat from the blaze was so intense that it deformed the helmets of several of the firemen.

An employee at the scene said there had been some 20 people inside the building when the fire broke out. The flames spread throughout the store within a couple of minutes but all workers managed to get out uninjured.

Peter Cordina, head of the Civil Protection Department, said residents near the back of the factory were evacuated as a precaution.

The cause of the fire, which broke out just after 3 p.m., is unknown. An inquiry, led by Magistrate Silvio Meli and assisted by experts Richard Aquilina and Alfred Vella, is being held today.

The warehouse, situated between Misraħ Sta Venera and Misraħ il-Barrieri, contained groceries, household goods and toiletries. Francis Busuttil, one of the owners, said some of the goods could have been flammable.

Firemen started fighting the blaze from the front of the warehouse and teams of five, each wearing an oxygen cylinder, took it in turns to enter the building.

A fire fighter emerged from the smoking building saying the heat inside was extreme. He said he could see no further than a couple of inches and it was impossible to stay in there for more than five minutes.

Since it was proving very difficult to control the fire, cars at the back of the warehouse were removed with a company fork lifter and the fire was also fought from the back, initially with one pump and eventually with two.

Mr Cordina said things were so tough going because the store was deep, there was a lot of material inside and the roof was in danger of collapsing.

The site was a hive of activity throughout the operation as water bowsers, fire engines, an ambulance, fire fighters, emergency doctors and policemen were all kept busy.

Sta Venera mayor Elizabeth Vella was also on site.

Three ground monitors which pumped water into the building were installed at around 6.45 p.m. so that the firemen could move out because of the danger being posed by the roof. Thousands of gallons of waters were used.

The fire was finally brought under control at around 7 p.m. but the operation lasted until 10.30 p.m.