Scaffolding was installed on a construction site in Gżira after a metal pole crashed onto a French woman’s head on Monday afternoon, photographs show.

Following the accident that occurred at about 11.30 a.m., a metal roof was erected on the level of the first floor of the three-storey apartment block that is under construction on the corner of The Strand and Sir Patrick Stuart Street.

The 22-year-old was walking along the underlying pavement when she was hit by the falling metal pole. She suffered grievous head injuries but was not critical, the police said.

People who work in the vicinity said they saw no scaffolding before the accident occurred.

When contacted, however,the owner of the property curtly denied this.

A witness, who preferred to remain anonymous, said she was smoking outside her office when the woman, who lives in St Paul’s Bay and was accompanied by her slightly older sister and a male, was hit on the base of her neck by the two-metre-long pipe.

“I am sad and shocked about what happened. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The impact slammed her to the ground and her head was cut open,”the witness said. She was the one who called the ambulance and then rushed to assist the injured woman.

“She was delirious and her eyes were rolling. She was bleeding. Eventually, she came to and started mumbling.”

The witness was also concerned about the victim’s sister, who started to panic, thinking she was dying.

“She was traumatised and must be so lost. I would like to help her sue the developers too. Otherwise, nothing will happen. They will just get a stupid fine but her life will be ruined due to negligence.

“No one was on site at the time, so it was probably not a question of a wrong manoeuvre... The pole was wedged between the balconies of the first and second floor along a makeshift concrete pillar,” she explained, pointing to the same set-up between the balconies of the top level.

The witness, who has reported what she saw to the police, repeated what another witness recounted on Monday: that a man arrived on the scene five minutes after the accident and threw part of the pole, which seemed to have been broken, into the ground floor and the other into the closed area around the crane across the road.

When asked about this, the owner did not comment.

The Occupational Health and Safety Authority said it was investigating the case and could not comment at this stage. The police too are investigating.

Building Industry Consultative Council chairman Ċensu Galea, commenting on the incident in his capacity as an architect, said that “these things should not happen and all precautions should be taken to be sure they do not”.

It was not just a matter of installing scaffolding but the scaffolding also had to be correct, depending on the type of construction site, he pointed out.

“The wrong scaffolding could be more dangerous than no scaffolding at all.”

Ame Health and Safety Services Ltd, whose sign, listing safety precautions on the construction site, is hanging on the property, told The Times that the development was not in its hands.