Updated - An apartment in Sliema was extensively damaged by fire early this afternoon. The tenant, a 50-year-old woman, was not injured.

The blaze, at about 3.30 p.m., forced the evacuation of neighbours until fire-fighters of the Civil Protection Department rendered the area safe. The cause of the blaze is not known.

An hour earlier, employees at an office block in Blata l-Bajda were also evacuated because of a fire.

The blaze was in a disused showroom close to Mizzi House. Smoke was seen coming out of a shaft, but the blaze was quickly contained.

Fire crews this morning also tackled a small fire in a house in lower Merchants' Street, Valletta. A resident was given medical attention for smoke inhalation.

Top Picture, the flat on fire in Sliema. Picture by Christopher Pecorella - mynews@timesofmalta.com

Pictures below - the scene in Blata l-Bajda.