Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia admitted in Parliament that the use of fire engines in the demolition of a private building was a rare occurrence and had only happened once since 2013.

However, replying to a parliamentary question on the subject from PN MP Chris Said, Dr Farrugia said there was nothing strange about it, as hiring fire engines for private occasions was a normal practice.

“In the past 10 years, fire engines have been hired for private occasions 1,263 times,” Dr Farrugia said.

He admitted, however, that this was the first time a fire engine had been engaged in order to control the debris and dust emanating from demolition works.

Last month, the Times of Malta reported that civil protection fire engines had been hired by Tal-Magħtab Construction – a contractor engaged with demolishing the Fortina Hotel – to control the debris and dust during works. He said Tal-Magħtab had paid €869 for the service.

Fire engines engaged by the contractor to quell the complaints

The start of the demolition exercise at the hotel in Sliema immediately hit the headlines when neighbours complained about the mayhem, as no proper techniques for dust control had been put in place by the contractor.

Footage also showed workers dumping building material from eight storeys up as dust choked the area of the Tigné peninsula. The fire engines were engaged by the contractor to quell the complaints.

However, industry sources told this newspaper that this was only a publicity stunt, as fire engines were not adequate for such work.

“To be effective, you need water mist cannons, which throw liquid particles in the air to mix with the debris. There are many contractors who have such equipment, but it seems that this particular contractor does not,” the sources said.

Tal-Maghtab has won various public contracts since Labour were returned to power in 2013. Before that, they had built the Labour Party headquarters in Ħamrun.