The fireworks factory that exploded in Għarb on Sunday should not have been open at the time of the incident, The Times learnt yesterday as all four victims killed in the explosion were accounted for.
Some body parts were found and, although army personnel and police continued to comb the area to ensure there were no unexploded petards, the fourth body was found at around noon yesterday.
Sources said George Gatt, the owner of the fireworks factory, was in the second room, where the initial blast is believed to have happened. He was found almost intact under the rubble.
Mr Gatt’s distraught sisters told The Times that fireworks had been their brother’s passion since the age of seven. “At noon he was eating and joking around the table at my house. After lunch he dashed towards the main door, like he always did, and that is the last we saw of him,” Frances, his youngest sister, said as she held back tears.
Bryan Portelli was outside the second room and the blast flung him some 70 metres away. Rescuers recognised him from a white belt he was wearing.
The blast flattened the two adjacent rooms. Peppi Cini was in the first room, which is very close to the road, while Mario Gauci was in the third room.
A fourth room, initially believed to contain a generator, was extensively damaged. It contained unused chemicals.
Two men, who are believed to be close to the factory, were also questioned by police.
The area where the incident happened is a nature trail popular with hikers and families.
According to the factory’s 2003 planning permit, the factory could only open for three hours in the morning on Sundays, between 7 and 10am.
Sunday’s explosions happened between 2.40 and 3.30pm, some five hours after the Qalb ta’ Ġesu factory should have been closed for the day.
Additional reporting Matthew Xuereb.