Michael Testa
Couple blame excavation works for collapse in St Paul's Bay
Alex Wright: "... I looked down and saw her buried under the debris from her waist down and crying in pain." Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi.
The couple who had a close brush with fate after the roof of their St Paul's Bay residence partially collapsed are blaming demolition works next door, an accusation the contractor is flatly denying.
Alex Wright, 51, was on the roof applying cement to prevent rainwater from leaking through cracks when the accident happened on Sunday.
He told The Times that, suddenly, the floor under his feet caved in and crashed into the small hall below. He managed to cling to the wall, slightly hurting his neck and back, but his wife Pat, 52, was not so lucky.
Mrs Wright happened to be in the hall at the time and one of the stone slabs grazed her head and shoulder, before landing on her right ankle causing multiple fractures. She was yesterday undergoing an operation.
"As I was hanging from the wall I heard my wife shouting for help. When I managed to get back on the roof and looked down, I saw her buried under the debris from her waist down and crying in pain," Mr Wright recalled.
Neighbours, who heard a loud noise and the cries for help, rushed to assist the Wrights. Mr Wright had words of praise for his neighbours, the police and the Civil Protection Department for their prompt assistance.
Mr Wright, who lives in Floriana, uses the premises, consisting of two rooms, the small hall and a garden, where he keeps his boat.
An inventory officer at Mcast, Corradino, Mr Wright is insisting the trouble began soon after the demolition works began and water started seeping into his premises.
Clearly upset by the incident, Mr Wright said he had highlighted the problems to the contractor on various occasions.
However, the contractor, Alan Farrugia, who is also the owner of the new site, denied any responsibility when contacted.
When asked whether the incident was a consequence of the excavation works next door, Mr Farrugia said the roof collapse and works were unrelated.
What happened, he said, was that the roof slabs gave way when Mr Wright walked on them. He said he had nothing to do with the roof.
Mr Farrugia said the fissures, which Mr Wright said had appeared on the wall and on the floor as a result of the works, will be checked by his architect.
Last Sunday's incident is the latest in a string of incidents of people insisting that their residences had suffered damages as a result of construction works on the foundations of adjacent buildings.
In June 2004, a building in Ramon Perellos Street, St Paul's Bay, collapsed killing Mary Zarb, a 60-year-old retired and widowed teacher, and Russian interpreter Nadya Vavilova, 24, who was attending a lesson in Maltese at Ms Zarb's flat at the time of the incident.
The building was situated next to a plot were excavation works were in progress to lay the foundations for a new building.
Rita Vella, an elderly woman, died after she was buried under the rubble of her house in similar circumstances in Sliema in April 2000.
The house in Cathedral Street also stood next to a building plot where excavation works were in hand.
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Paul Vella
Oct 7th 2008, 17:06
Notice how the contractor always gives some other reason for the collapse, it never has anything to do with their way of doing their job, blame it on 'act of god', maybe even saying the resident actually did it on purpose in order to be able to seek compensation. But it never has anything to do with the works next door. My mother was buried under the rubble of her home in Sliema, 12th April 2000 when similar excavation works were being carried out next door.
We have heard the contractor in our case trying to shift the blame on every possible thing under the sun, rain falling during the night, vibrations from a generator, anything but the obvious. Most of these contractors are simply with all due respect to any serious carpenters reading this, carpenters. They would have bought the machinery from third parties and would have never carried out similar jobs. Knocking down a house is easy they would say, excavating is child's play. Then when something like this happens, its all due to so many other reasons, but never their incompetence.
Charles Camilleri
Oct 7th 2008, 16:26
@ R.Muscat. We all agree with you but regulations alone will not do the trick. The enforcement of these regulations is the problem. These incidents no longer cause any commotion because they are now common and as you rightly pointed out no one is held to account.
R Muscat
Oct 7th 2008, 10:25
Shame on MEPA and the authorities, how often have we seen these incidents which have had tragic consequences and yet the authorities sit on on their backsides expecting the common person to handle it by taking the contractor to court.
The justice system is also to blame we have yet to see a contractor/developer/rambo go to jail for the tragic consequences when innocent people have lost their lives.
Often these Rambos damage the adjacent building so as to bully the owners into selling the property at a discounted price.
In civilised countries the contractor is forced to place guarantees before construction begins and has to pay for any damages to the adjacent property, but then again we are not living in a civilised country if one looks at how these cowboys flaunt the law with pollution, illegal construction practices, trucks dropping rubble and concrete in our roads all at the tax payers expense.
When are we going to see serious regulation of the construction industry?