A fireworks enthusiast is battling for his life after taking the full force of a blast in an explosion at St Catherine's Fireworks Factory in Marsaxlokk while preparing for the Żejtun feast next month.
John Abela, 62, of Żejtun was critically injured and suffered serious burns when the chemicals of a petard he was working on exploded at the factory at Tas-Silġ at about 10 a.m. yesterday.
Mr Abela was not alone in the factory. There were another four men working with him.
Pierre Mifsud, 33, also from Żejtun, was seriously injured when he burnt his hand.
Mario Farrugia, 29, of Żejtun, Anthony Farrugia, 42, of Fgura and Mr Abela's 39-year-old son, Salvu, were also at the factory but escaped with slight injuries.
Mr Abela, known to his friends as Ġanni s-Sagristan, only recently stepped down from his active role as sacristan at the Żejtun parish to dedicate himself completely to preparing the fireworks for the upcoming feast.
He was working in a small room under a carob tree on the property when the explosion occurred, sources said. None of the other factory buildings, including the store where the chemicals and explosives were kept, were touched by the explosion.
Minutes after the blast was heard, Civil Protection Department personnel and the police were on site assisting the victims. Mr Abela and Mr Mifsud were immediately rushed to hospital. The other three were given first aid on site and then taken to Mater Dei Hospital.
Police Inspector Pierre Micallef Grimaud, who happened to be in the area taking photos of the fields, heard the blast.
"I was trying to take a few photos of two tractors tilling the field and was about to take my first picture when I heard a powerful blast that rocked the ground. I looked around and saw a cloud and immediately contacted the police headquarters about the incident," he said.
One resident who lives close by in Marsaxlokk said she heard the blast echoing over the fields and ran out to see what happened. "It was really loud."
While carefully watching and waiting for news, residents commented how yesterday's high humidity and southerly wind were hazardous factors when mixing explosives. "It is the worst day ever to work on explosives. It is extremely dangerous because of the humidity," one resident said.
An explosives expert said it was highly recommended not to mix the explosives in weather conditions such as yesterday's. "The chemicals should not be handled in humid weather because there could easily be a spark and a spontaneous combustion."
St Catherine's fireworks factory is licensed in Mr Abela's name. He has been involved since the 1970s when, together with other fireworks enthusiasts, he had started collecting money to buy the land in Tas-Silġ.
The factory was yesterday sealed off and explosives experts will continue with their work there today.
This is the third fireworks factory explosion this year. The last one was almost three weeks ago in Għargħur when, luckily, no one was injured. Two men died at the St Sebastian factory in Qormi last February.