Concrete plunge Sliema motorist still unaware of contractor’s name

A Sliema resident, whose car ended up in 60 centimetres of wet concrete laid on a public road without any warning to motorists, is still waiting to be told who was responsible for the mess.

The accident happened more than two weeks ago, on May 4, on Dragut Street in Qui-Si-Sana. She had left home at noon unaware of any roadworks and returned three hours later. But as she turned into the street where she lives, her red Seat plunged into concrete, which had just been laid to fill a trench.

There were no workers on the road, and, worse still, no road signs.

It took 10 people and a pickup truck to pull the car out of the concrete. Four “helpful” police officers from the Sliema station also arrived on site.

The woman said she suffered whiplash and had to take medication.

When enquiring about the contractor carrying out the roadworks to claim insurance, she said the police told her they could not disclose his identity because of “data protection”, which the police insisted on when contacted by The Times.

They insisted the case had been duly investigated and charges were expected to be issued.

The motorist complained about the “uncooperative” attitude of the police, saying she had gone to the Sliema police three times to pick up the police report and told it was not ready yet. When, on her fourth visit, she was again told it was not ready, she demanded to be given whatever the police had. She said she was given a document that included her and the contractor’s testimonials but not what the police themselves saw on the scene.

The police said “a report was lodged at the very same time and could be picked up anytime”.

But Transport Malta said it was still waiting for the report before it could “identify the contractor and proceed as per legal notice 29/2010”, which, according to TM, binds contractors to ensure the safety of all road users through the installation of appropriate signage and hoarding when works were being carried out along or in the vicinity of a road.

“This accident was a nightmare. The hassle exhausted me. It seems the police are covering up. However, a Traffic Department officer who had arrived on site and asked some workers further up the road to hose down my car before the concrete went hard, assured me he would act as a witness if the accident turned into a court case,” she said.

When The Times attempted to find out who was responsible for the works, the Sliema police said questions should be directed at Transport Malta and the Sliema local council.

TM conducted “an inspection of the site post event” but a spokesman said it had not commissioned any work on site and there was no TM permit for any work there.

Questions sent to Sliema mayor Johanna Gonzi remained unanswered at the time of writing.