The drizzle that sprinkled the island 24 hours ago may have been greeted with relief by some but people in flood-prone areas dread this time of year when the looming first storms threaten to strike.

Fortunately, Qormi residents should get some reprieve this year as the first phase of the €52 million flood relief project will be functional by the end of the month.

This part of the project is the most challenging as we are having to contend with seawater seepage

Once works on the remaining 100-metre stretch in the upper part of Valley Road are complete, the Qormi-Marsa canal would have a capacity to handle up to 118 cubic metres of water per second.

Contrary to the other components of the project, which involve a network of underground tunnels, the flood relief measures at Qormi consisted in the upgrading of culverts, realignment of critical junctions and the reconstruction of three bridges.

Drainage grill.

Lying only four metres above sea level, the possibility of excavating underground tunnels along Wied is-Sewda, in Qormi was immediately ruled out. Though it will not eliminate flooding completely, project leader Carm Mifsud Borg said the new system would be able to cope with heavy rainfall brought about by huge storms that normally occurred once every five years.

The entire project, which consists of three other independent components in Żebbuġ, Marsascala and a stretch from Attard to Ta’ Xbiex, will be completed by March.

The bulk of the works involve an 11-kilometre tunnel with a diameter varying between three and six-and-a-half metres, from Wied Inċita in Attard to Ta’ Xbiex seafront.

At an estimated cost of €28 million, the tunnel will alleviate flooding in Birkirkara and Msida through a system of 98 gratings located at strategic parts of the valley and will handle up to 90 cubic metres per second.

“This part of the project is the most challenging as we are having to contend with seepage of seawater in the final part of the tunnel at Ta’ Xbiex due to its close proximity to the coast.

“Holes are being excavated from the top to be able to reach these particular areas and seal them with concrete,” Mr Mifsud Borg said.

Excavation works on the tunnel will be ready by the end of next month, with the project becoming operational by March. In addition, water from the outlet structure in Ta’ Xbiex will be pumped to a 10,000 cubic metre reservoir in Gżira, which would then percolate and replenish the aquifer.

The second phase set for completion is that in Żebbuġ, consisting of a 1.9-kilometre long tunnel, about three metres wide, with 33 gratings along the way.

The water flow will be a relatively modest 10 cubic metres per second and this will also help alleviate problems further down in Qormi and Marsa, which used to bear the brunt of the heavy rainfall flowing from the Żebbuġ and Siġġiewi areas. This will be deviated through a separate tunnel near the Marsa golf course.

Excavation works have been completed and the project is set to be functional by the end of November.

By the end of the year, works will also be completed on the Żabbar-Marsascala tunnel, when the remaining 50 metres would have been excavated.

Measuring some three metres in diameter, the 3.2-kilometre tunnel will handle 22 cubic metres of water per second, through 28 gratings. As in the case of Ta’ Xbiex, some of the water will be pumped to a dam in Marsascala.

The project, co-financed by the EU, has been in the offing for years and work started in 2012. The discovery of archaeological remains, leaking drainage systems and unrecorded underground utilities, such as water and telephony services, delayed the works by a number of months.