Malta: second only to China for fireworks fatalities

The tragedy that struck Gharb on Sunday afternoon claimed the lives of six people. Only a few weeks earlier, a man died in an explosion at the August 15 Fireworks factory in Dwejra, limits of Malta.

Another man died in May at the St Catherine’s fireworks factory in Marsaxlokk, while two fireworks enthusiasts men lost their lives in February in an explosion at the St Sebastian’s Fireworks factory in Qormi.

According to an international website documenting the worldwide accidents involving fireworks, only one country in the world had more accidents involving injury and death than Malta in 2010. This happens to be the country where we are importing chemicals to manufacture fireworks in Malta – China.

In 2010 alone China experienced seven explosions causing the deaths of 48 people and resulting injuries in 188 people. The list however is compiled from news stories appearing in world media and may underestimate the actual figures of accidents.

These statistics also have to be taken in the context of China’s population, currently pushing 2 billion. With our population of just 400,000, the number of fatalities as a proportion of the entire country is arguably much higher than China’s.

More to the point, the industry is evidently becoming less safe with each passing year. The reason for this increase in accidents is however the subject of much debate.

Joseph Theuma, secretary of the Malta Pyrotechnics Association, was reluctant to comment on Sunday’s incident due to the pending inquest, having been appointed to the board of inquiry.

However he did state: “accidents are caused. They don’t just happen.” He also stressed the need for some serious education regarding the use of chemicals, the manufacturing and storing of fireworks.

Servolo Delicata, who is a registered pyrotechnics inspector, made a statement before being appointed to the board of inquiry to the effect that the Gharb factory should not have had the quantity of fireworks stored on site.

Although the law regulates the storage of potassium nitrate and chlorate (see above), Delicata pointed to a loophole in the law, which lacks any regulation for the storage of the newer compound, potassium perchlorate.

He also expressed concern about the igniters used in the production of fireworks, which often go off on their own. Knowledge of their chemical consistency is minimal. and the fact that this changes according to suppliers makes the igniter very dangerous.

Delicata suggested a moratorium on igniters for two years.

Separately, a technical expert in the production of fireworks told MaltaToday, on the condition of remaining anonymous, that the problem lies in the metals being used. Metals in the chemicals have only been used in the last few years, and thus expertise on these materials is limited.

One thing that he is sure of is that the metals in the chemicals make the fireworks more volatile after the manufacturing stage. This is strongly corroborated by the increasing number of accidents that have taken place involving completed fireworks, as was the case in the explosions of both Gharb and Mosta.

Both incidents involved accidents occurring after the manufacture of the fireworks, whereas in the past accidents have traditionally occurred during the mixing stages.

The Board of Inquiry is to be headed by Prof Alfred Vella, an expert on chemicals, assisted by Profs Victor Axiak, Joe Theuma and ServoloDelicata.

Sunday’s explosion at the Farrugia Firework Factory in Gharb claimed the lives of five enthusiasts. The victims include factory owner Ninu Farrugia, 67, and his son Noel, 31; the latter’s pregnant wife, Antionette, 27 and Jean Pierre Azzopardi who perished during the blast. Raymond Farrugia, 38, other son of NinuFarrugia who succumbed to his wounds at Mater Dei Hospital on Monday. Peter Paul Micallef, 35, is still in critical condition, fighting for his life at Mater Dei hospital.

An explosion of the magnitude seen last Sunday was recorded in July 2007, when five people lost their lives while working on fireworks for the St Helen’s festa in Birkirkara. A further explosion the following November, which killed two more pyrotechnic enthusiasts prompted a call for the revision of safety regulations which lead to the eventual ban on ammonium perchlorate in the manufacture of fireworks. Ammonium perchlorate, which was used for the brightest of the coloured fireworks, is used as propellent fuel in space shuttle rocket boosters and military rockets.

Six soldiers and policemen died on the same day as Sunday’s incident, exactly 26 years ago when fireworks went off aboard a patrol boat that was being used to transport the fireworks just off Comino.

Director of the Civil Protection Department (CPD) Patrick Murgo said these incidents are taken very seriously due to the high dangers that remain even after the explosion.

“Unexploded petards and explosive chemicals may go off at any time presenting hazards to both the response team and bystanders. Pockets of fire which are present in various localities around the area of the accident also present risks as well as the instability of the remaining structures which may collapse at any time.

“Putting out the fires is also done with extreme caution as some of the chemicals may react violently with water.”

An action plan, developed by the CPD, is followed in conjunction with other emergency services to rescue casualties, followed by a fire fighting operation to reduce further damage to human lives and property. Lastly a search for dead persons takes place after which the site is declared safe for the investigation team.