‘Miraculous’ chapel survives blast, but more inspections still needed

Gharb’s historical San Dimitri chapel – according to legend, the site of more than one miracle in the last – appears to have been spared any serious damage by last Sunday’s fireworks factory blast, which took place a mere 300 away.

However, some of its window-panes were shattered by the explosion.

Preliminary enquiries by the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage have so far indicated “no apparent structural damage” to the mediaeval chapel.

“We should be inspecting the chapel soon for a fuller evaluation,” superintendence official Nathaniel Cutajar told MaltaToday.

Back in 2007, Malta Environment Planning Authority auditor Joe Falzon blasted the decision to approve a fireworks factory so close to this monument.

“If there is no danger to the chapel of San Dimitri, why insist on an insurance policy? If, on the other hand, there is a danger, no amount of insurance money can replace a historical monument,” Falzon had claimed.

He criticised the case officer for saying that no studies on the impact of a potential explosion were required, simply because the chapel had incurred no damage in an explosion in August 2005.

“How did he know that this was the most massive explosion possible? Is it not possible that a repeat of the accident can take place, but of more massive proportions which will cause damage to the chapel and other archaeological remains in the vicinity?”

In his report Falzon declared that the approval of the fireworks factory led him to suspect “the intention of the case officer to recommend an approval of the application, irrespective of the facts surrounding this application.”

The auditor also notes that despite an objection to the development from the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage and the DC-EPD Working Group, the application was never referred to the Heritage Advisory Committee for its consideration.  The Auditor pointedly asks: “why?”

Case Officer David Cassar had justified his positive recommendation by stating that the application was to reconstruct an existing building which had been destroyed by an accident. 

But this justification was deemed unacceptable by the auditor.

“Are we to assume, therefore, that once a developer obtains a permit, that permit extends indefinitely, irrespective of the consequences? Are we to accept a situation, therefore, where our un-built environment can only get worse and our historical heritage slowly eroded away?”

The auditor also notes that photographs of the site clearly show that this development is an unacceptable intrusion in the natural environment. 

“Why not take the opportunity to relocate this development towards a more acceptable site, where it can be screened more effectively and pose no risk to the historical heritage?” asked Falzon.

When issuing the permit MEPA imposed a condition requiring the applicant to insure the chapel against the eventuality of another explosion.

But according to Falzon, insurance coverage is only meaningful where the risk is one of damage to property which may be replaced, but definitely “not acceptable” on its own to make up for irreparable damage to the historical heritage. 

The auditor concluded that the application was assessed in a superficial manner without taking sufficient consideration of the environmental implications of the proposed development including those of a        historical nature. 

The San Dimitri legend

According to Gozitan folklore, a woman called Zgugina went to pray to San Dimitri in the same chapel to get her son back after he was abducted by pirates. She made a vow to keep an oil lamp (musbieh) lit day and night until her son;s return. Answering her prayers, San Dimitri leapt from the portrait on his white horse and rode to the pirate ship over water. He fought the pirates and returned her son safely.

Another legend has it that the original San Dimitri chapel was closer to the cliffs. But one day, an earthquake caused the chapel to subside, still intact, into the sea.

Despite being submerged, Zgugina’s oil lamp is said to be still kept alight day and night, and fishermen have occasionally claimed to see it’s the light of this underwater chapel from their boats.