Updated: Man critically injured in fireworks blast

Adds new video footage, details.

A 26-year-old man from Mosta was critically injured this afternoon in an explosion at a fireworks factory at Bidnija, close to Mgarr.

The blast took place at about 2.30 p.m.

The 26-year-old suffered severe burns in the incident. Two other men, aged 81 and 45, also from Mosta, were treated in hospital for slight injuries.

The fireworks factory, which produces fireworks for the feast of Sta Marija in Mosta, consists of a complex of several rooms surrounded by a boundary wall. One of the rooms and part of the boundary wall were brought down by the blast.

"We heard an explosion and within minutes we heard three police cars and a fire engine driving past at high speed," a nearby resident said.

There were small fires in several areas and bomb disposal experts cleared people from the area because of fears of unexploded petards. Policemen, ambulances and rescuers from the Civil Protection Department were on the scene.

The most recent fireworks explosion was in Ghaxaq on the night of September 24. That blast brought down a boundary wall but injured no one.