A 12-year-old boy, three teenagers, a woman and two men in their 20s were hospitalised yesterday after a confetti cannon exploded at about midday in Gudja, disrupting the Santa Marija festa celebrations.

The makeshift air cannon was being operated by a group of young boys aiming to spray the crowd with confetti.

Instead, the cylinder full of compressed air exploded in the middle of the crowd, with shards of metal striking those who were around the contraption, including bandsmen.

Two people were seriously injured. Alexander Bigeni, 16, of Żebbuġ suffered severe leg wounds and Żabbar bandsman Bjorn Callus, 26, sustained injuries to his neck and shoulder. The blast happened in Main Street where residents were celebrating the annual village feast of Santa Marija.

The band march was immediately cancelled as ambulances were called to rush three of those injured to hospital.

Despite blue decorations adorning all the streets on the occasion of the feast, the village quickly turned into a ghost town as most residents walked home in shock.

Apart from one band club, which continued to play loud music, the atmosphere was sombre as people watched police gather evidence from the scene, where a sea of shredded white paper partially covered pools of blood.

The evening procession was held as planned because none of those injured was in a critical condition.

The police said seven people were being treated at Mater Dei Hospital including three Gudja residents – a 33-year-old woman, a 22-year-old man, and a boy of 16 – a 12-year-old from Gżira and a 14-year-old from Valletta. They had all suffered slight injuries.

Sources said the boys operating the air cannon formed part of the Maria Assunta band club.

The blast could have had even more serious consequences had it occurred a few minutes later in the main square, where women with pushchairs were waiting for the band, witnesses said.

Although the blast was loud, it does not seem to have caused damage to nearby properties.

Magistrate Carol Peralta has launched an inquiry and appointed experts to assist him.