Mosta Fireworks factory blows up
We live miles away from the Mosta fireworks factory, but the blast was so great that it sent our window-blinds spinning inwards. We thought the explosion was just outside.
We rushed out to see, in the distance, fields on fire and massive clouds of smoke. Within minutes, the sirens began. If there was anyone inside that factory, there is no way they can have survived.
There isn’t going to be much of a celebration for Santa Maria in Mosta this weekend.
If this isn’t a wake-up call for the government, I don’t know what they’re waiting for. Despite the many vested interests and partisan factors involved, it’s time to crack down on explosives. The situation is ridiculously dangerous, with untrained people fiddling around with gunpowder in huts in the middle of fields.
This is beyond insanity.
And the factory is NOT in Burmarrad, as di-ve.com is reporting now. It is on a hillock above the road between the Mosta/Mgarr roundabout and Rabat, Dwejra area.
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Really sad… I heard it from Gzira.
This is what, the fifth or sixth this year?
Fourth actually. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves..
I live on the outskirts of Attard. I was having lunch when suddenly I hear a huge explosion. My windows rattled. Three explosions followed. I rushed to my balcony and I see a great cloud before my eyes. Everybody is gossiping out on the rooftops. I hope no one is injured.
Hadn’t it been for the 1st load explosion, I would have thought that an earthquake hit Malta. My apartment simply rocked, and I could hear people screaming with fright! And that’s in St.Paul’s Bay! When will this manmade destruction be stopped?
I really don’t know what they are waiting for! A harmless dance party with a few drunken heads is illegal in a feast and fiddling with fire and explosions is permitted.
I thought it was a plane crash at first, it was so horrific. Several explosions in succession.
There’s something that has to be done . Too many explosions are happening and too many people are dying with such carelessness . If nothing is done then all we can expect is more and more deaths from factory explosions . It’s extremely dangerous and survivors can only be few if none. This has to stop because now it’s definitely borderline.
I live in Rabat. I thought it’s an earthquake, It was a powerful blast, I hope nobody died.
From Italy at the moment, all the maltese news webistes that I know of are not responding. I realised something big had happened. Your blog is working fine.
I hope that no one was inside the factory but being 2 days away from the feast it is highly unlikely.
“From Italy at the moment, all the maltese news webistes that I know of are not responding.”
Joseph, it must be that the Italians were logging into the timesonline to check the news about those four co-nationals who were arraigned for skinny dipping in St. George’s at 3.30am.
|Shut up you stupid silly arrogant person What do you know about fireworks factory.? THe factory involved is not huts in a field and peolpe involved do not fiddle around with gunpowder
[Daphne – No. They make their fireworks from Twistees. And you’re right: it’s not a hut in a field. It’s a bunker on a hillock. That’s why the blast rolled right across to my house several uninterrupted miles away and blew the blinds in. You’ve got a damned nerve, talking about arrogance when your hobby involves gunpowder and blowing places up. Nobody ever died through reading a book.]
Well said Daphne !! Too many people have been blown up to pieces because of carelesness. I dont know why this person is so agitated!! We maybe dont know about fireworks factories because we like to live intact. If you want to fiddle with gunpowder do it at your own risk somewhere secluded in the middle of the sea. Dont get me wrong ; my sincere condolences to the the Dimech families but a stitch in time would have REALLY saved nine lives this year from the administraion’s side!!!
Mario Mifsud, I think you’re the one that’s being stupid and arrogant when it comes to justifiying ‘ the factory in the fields’
These fireworks factories are never safe when manned by ‘delettanti’ and sadly these incidents will keep happening as long as people like yourself keep manufacturing these bombs with this’ I know it all attitude’.
Bomb-making of any type is a profession and not a passion, and therefore it should be the job of these professionals and not silly arrogant persons.
THAT MUST BE OFF CHADWICK LAKES?
But the thing is, when one talks about enforcing rules and making sure that fireworks are manufactured safely these people actually turn on to attack those who propose safer procedures. It almost seems to me that these people are glad to face such danger. I feel sorry for their loved ones. For them, I dont know.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100813/local/mosta-fireworks-factory-explodes
Pierre Portelli(41 minutes ago)
Yes I am in my mother’s house in Mtarfa…it was scary. My poor 72 year old, heartsick mother is still under shock! What country is this that it is legal or tolerated to have fireworks factories that scare people out of their wits, yet illegal for 2 kids to skinny dip at 5.00 am?? God help us…
I even heard the 3 blasts from Zurrieq.
In Fgura it sounded louder than Gudja’s petards.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W56ZRoxnphw
You are beyond insanity
Are you addressing those who put their lives and that of others at risk purportedly in the name of honouring some saint?
How many people have died due to fireworks explosions? How many individuals were eventually held responsible and fined!? I am no collector of data, but to think that we fine foolish teenagers because they skin-dip and we do it with the passion of a moral crusade.
At times, I feel exasperated with the same news of pre-announced fireworks accidents happening over and over again. The same scenario, of desolation and death, the same liturgical manifestations of solidarity. I start loosing sympathy, words of compassion clog my throat, I become emotionless, how terrible! But I am open to listen and be persuaded, that I am wrong.
It seems the government is waiting for problem to solve itself through self-destruction. Why do the many always have to put up with the whims of few fanatics?
‘And all the hunters and trappers and fireworks makers couldn’t put Humpty together again’. So sad.
Not only is it insanity but the people who manufacture the fireworks have shown time and again that they are incompetent. If a commercial operation had this appalling accident rate would rightly have been shut down years ago. But in Malta everything is justified in the name of ‘delizzju’.
Judging by the number of fireworks factory incidents in Malta -when compared to the rest of the world-, one would be wrongly inclined to think that Malta was the only place on the planet where fireworks are produced!
Maybe that’s because in Malta they tend to be produced by people without the necessary “scientific” training.
No. Nobody ever died through reading a book. But more people die from car accidents annually.
You need a license to actually be in a fireworks factory and the regulations are getting more strict as the years go by. Unfortunately, such accidents still take place.
Though I still think it’s much more dangerous being on the road here than being in a fireworks factory..
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100816/world-news/two-kills-in-china-fireworks-explosion
I’ll safely bet that nothing will happen to the ‘delizzju’. The authorities have better things to do, like fining young skinny-dipping foreigners.
We are an immature nation.
Stefan, fining the skinny dippers nets Euro 100 per boy. Not sure if it is higher than that for girls.
It goes some way to pay off the national debt.
Daphne, whilst I am in no way interested in protecting the future of fireworks for the sake of the safety of those that I hold most dear, and I am not interested in engaging in an argument on what the government should or should not do, I think that your comment regarding “untrained people fiddling around with gunpowder in huts” is very unfair in this case.
Unfortunately, as you so rightly point out, at the moment there are many sources of media that are providing inaccurate information, however your article also appears to be one of them.
[Daphne – Hardly, The blessed thing about chemistry is that it is entirely predictable. Like maths, you get the same result every time: X + Y = Z. It is only when you introduce another factor into the equation that the result changes. Explosions do not come out of nowhere. They are NOT the result of the random nature of gunpowder. They happen because another factor is introduced through human error or carelessness.]
“They are NOT the result of the random nature of gunpowder.”
Well, depends which way you look at it! If the environment is wrong, very humid for example, spontaneous combustion (explosion) CAN occur, which is why, in most European countries, fireworks can only be manufactured in an environmentally controlled building. (Besides the multitude of other safety regulations )
Is that the case in Malta?
Oh yes, T Camilleri, inaccurate information. If I wanted to build a home-made rocket-launcher I’d be breaking the law, but manipulating explosives in a shack in the middle of a field, on an overcrowded island is fine. Ghax delizzju. Bhal dak li qallu, x’cuc hu d-Dipartiment tal-Chemistry, jekk “kors” jaghmlek kwalifikat fil-piroteknika. Ghal ftit inxolju l-EOD section tal-AFM ukoll.
Apologies Daphne, I did not realise I was replying to a columnist/ blogger rather than a proper journalist, ie someone that researches facts first before claiming that they know exactly what happened.
A blog, and to an extent, opinion stories do not need to be built on facts. They are valuable public discourse in that the author can explore inchoate ideas, where the fact-finding is difficult and the subject is nebulous.
Setting the bar too high means that people cannot share, argue and evolve ideas and outlooks. Writing features and reporting need to be factual and balanced.
You should shed a tear for investigative reporting in Malta. These reporters seem to be a mythical breed riding unicorns and fighting gryphons in the nether imagination of local bureaucrats in the private and public sectors.
“The blessed thing about chemistry is that it is entirely predictable. Like maths, you get the same result every time: X + Y = Z.”
Unfortunately, that is not always the case, since most reactions are so complex, and depend on a lot of variables which may not be under the chemist’s control. Explosions and such accidents may thus happen even to experts.
However, these would probably know how to handle the situation in a better and safer way, which is why I agree that all work should be carried out by such people, maybe in a more controlled environment.
The ‘factory’ is in the spot that Norman Lowell calls his ‘sacred spot’ It is where he and his cronies meet for BBQs
Then Norman must thank his lucky stars that the explosion did not “brown” him…(like a chicken).
Stefan, and I have to add, that Norman Lowell did announce, recently on Bondi+, something like a Big Bang for Europids, to start in Malta. I just hope the two things are not connected.
The problem with these firework fanatics is that they are not only putting their lives at risk, but sometimes put that of others at risk, too, as in the not-too-long-ago Naxxar incident where a couple of houses were practically demolished.
Who is to say, for example, that they do not carry explosives on the Gozo ferry or on the catamaran to/from Sicily, where – as far as I know – security checks are not carried out?
Daphne
I agree with you. Some people are egoists, they don ‘t care about the repercussions on others. This is like the divorce case, as long as I do what I want, and than we see what happens. This is fallacy in my opinion. We all have mistakes that we have to change otherwise we have to pay a very high price. What we give we get.
Thanks
I can only imagine what a scare you had. My sister lives in the same area, and I can only tell you that her place now has a few extra cracks with those explosions.
It is definitely time that the authorities should issue out new stringent laws on the saftey parameters for whoever desires to hold a fireworks manufacturers licence.
I cannot agree with those persons who commented on timesofmalta.com that fireworks should be banned. (Oh sure, ban those extra loud bangs, they just loosen your dental fillings, who wants to hear a loud bang after all.)
However, colourful fireworks are considered a work of art (not only on this barren rock), lots of work, expression and passion
( I believe, goes into the manufacturing on these pyrothectnics). I am no fireworks freak. I do enjoy the colourful spectacle of fireworks however, and who doesn’t.
As usual, here on these islands, we tend to cut corners in everything we do. I am not implying that this tragic incident was caused by human carelessness, I have no right to say so. What I can say is…. I am sure that our extreme summer heat, does not really help our local fireworks manufacturers. I believe that this is where the problem lies. However, I am sure that if rigid saftey parameters are adhered to, we would have less of these tragic circumstances.
It is so sad to hear that human life is lost (and the irreversible void it leaves to the families concerned) for a passionate albeit very dangerous pursuit.
It transpires that they were preparing to load the fireworks on a truck for transport to the center of the village. What if the explosion occurs half way or on arrival ?
You are so right. Does anyone factor in our very hot weather in August? It is not enough to put a nice name to these bunkers. “Factory” indeed.
As long as the “perpetrators” are the only people who suffer damage or who die as a result, then fine. But yes, you are right: what if the explosion occurs half way or on arrival? Chances are that the destruction and loss of life will be a hell of a lot greater, which is why more stringent regulations – assuming that any presently exist at all, that is – must be made and enforced (assuming, that none of these fanatics are policemen …).
Very true it is insane !
As if you `re a jack of all trades,the way you talk “untrained fiddling around and so on”,you know nothing about the imposing restrictions from those involved from the goverment concerning fireworks safety so please it don`t have to be you to start an issue .Shut up for once.
How many of these fireworks are loaded into cars and vans? I am sure that if the insurance companies know about such “loads” they would refuse to insure the vehilces outright, despite losses occurring through the transportation of “such” loads presumably not being covered by insurance.
Imposing restrictions! are you insane? We live in an only Malta .com gzira tal – genn habib.
And yet, dear Joe, despite the restrictions, explosions are becoming very common.
There is something very, very wrong.
I think you would have served your cause better hadn’t you come up with this exculpation of sorts.
If it is true that there are restrictions imposed by Government (which I do not doubt, of course), then it must be one of the following cases:
1. Restrictions exist on paper but are largely disregarded and there is no proper monitoring of the “industry”.
This could be either because the people involved in the industry are careless or else they are too ignorant (in the physical sciences) to understand the restrictions properly.
2. Existing restrictions are adhered to, but they are not strict enough.
Whichever is the case, it seems to me very irrational that there should be so many factories around, when we live on a very densely populated island and temperatures in summer can soar to dangerous levels.
Was it Mintoff who tried to curb this “industry” / “hobby” ? If he – with his strong fist – did not manage, I doubt it very much that the Nationalists will ever do.
The solution lies in either a “bipartisan” approach (but I doubt it, with such thickheads as Michael Iljun tal-Bidla Falzon) or an EU intervention. Anything short of this will mean the uninterrupted continuation of the present situation.
This is the fourth fireworks factory to be destroyed in 2010 alone.
The other three are the Saint Sebastian fireworks factory in Qormi, the 25th November Fireworks factory at tas-Silg near Marsaxlokk, and the Saint Bartholomew Fireworks factory in Gharghur.
I am no fireworks fan. I despise them. If it were up to me I’d ban the stuff. You may object and say that they’ll go underground and evade regulation. Are they regulated well enough – if at all – as things stand?
Can the Church withhold funding until a suitable QA/QC system is in place?
They cannot go underground. They still need to let off the fireworks somewhere (“ha nitpaxxew bl-ispettaklu”). So they’ll get caught, sooner or later.
Hi As long as there are votes to be lost or gained in any decisions to be taken by any Maltese politician, rest assured that the right decision will not be taken.
If it is taken it’ll be after public opinion has swayed towards what was supposed to have happened .
Insomma bhan-naghag ta’bendu.
Shame on them. Ghad-delizzu jaghmlu kollox, mhux hekk.
Adrian, As in many other “hot” (or should I say explosive) topics in Malta, there is a lot of politics in this, and therefore a lot of balancing out to do.
As ever, it is the extremes and the excesses that must be trimmed. After all, firework displays can be awesome.
But Adrian, I hope no one will suggest a referendum after reading your comment.
No no please spare us any more public expenses, another opportunity to see our politicians on all the media telling us how clever they are. And how much theirs only is the opinion that really counts.
Fireworks= blasts , people die, as long as it them not us. Maybe if your house was close to a fireworks factory or maybe you unfortunately happen to live next to an “iffisat fuq in-nar ” neighbour who blows up your house (remember what happened in Naxxar ) you would probably not be as liberal in your opinion on the matter of FIREWORKS.
There is no ‘delizju’ in this. The word ‘delizju’ is an excuse for the huge business behind it. Villages like Mqabba, Qrendi, Zurrieq, and Luqa, each put up two huge firework displays each year. How do you think they fund such displays, even in times of recession? Why do you think winning competitions is important?
Simple, they produce fireworks for other towns around Malta, Gozo and abroad!
These are not untrained people fiddling around with gunpowder. They are experts besotted with a highly dangerous pastime. I am acquainted with some of them.
Something like mountain climbing. After trekking in the Alps quite regularly for close to twenty years I am still overawed by the seeming insanity of so many people inching their way up the Nordwands The Lavaredo, Grandes Jorasses, Matterhorn. The Eiger Nordwand is jokingly referred to in the circles as the Mordwand (murder face). Yet every year these daunting faces are packed with climbers. Hundreds if not thousands have died.
The high risk is the real challenge.
What worries me on the local scene is the potential threat of this “sport” to others. This is what the authorities have to clamp down on.
How are these goods transported ? Is it possible for one of the so called (prewar) trucks they are carried in to blow up destroying a good part of a town or village ? Are ramblers safe?
This is what we non murtali mortals want to be reassured about. Never mind the dilettanti tan-nar. What about everyone else ? Are all the safeguards in place ?
Are all the rules and regulations applied rigidly where our safety is concerned ?
I strongly suggest government should set up a commission of inquiry to sort the matter out once and for all.
The least we can expect is to have peace of mind
This loghob tan-nar issue has become a national bugbear.
Exactly. Government’s main concern is to ensure that no harm is done to third parties. Possibly it should also demand that firework factories and enthusiasts be covered by an insurance/bond to pay for the extraordinary rescue and hospital costs incurred by the state when things go wrong. I think the same should apply for those who practice risky sports/activities.
Name an insurance company that is going to insure DELETTANTI handling explosive fireworks. I know I would not.
[Daphne – That’s why they are not insured.]
@ Adrian Bajada & Daphne
Actually, licence to operate a firework factory is granted upon the condition that workers be minimally-insured (Ch. 33). Also, an insurance policy covering third-parties is required for letting off fireworks (SL 33.03).
Experts? Pull the other one.
I strongly disagree with anyone claiming that the majority of fireworks manufacturers are not amateur. While they might be adept at producing the well timed petard explosions that make my butt clench so many times during the summer, their typical knowledge of chemistry is woeful. Fireworks “recipes” are typically handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth, describing how much “klorat tal-barju” to mix with “klurat tal-putassa” to make a big green bang.
There will be exceptions to the rule; some of the more ambitious ones will look for new ideas online, and maybe even go abroad. What is universal is the disdain for basic safety which makes the hobby so deadly in Malta.
The government does impose restrictions, on the amounts of potassium chlorate purchased for example, but many believe it’s just a big Nationalist conspiracy to destroy their beloved delizzju.
At the risk of being callous, I would say let them blow themselves up, provided they are no risk to bystanders. Anyone with a family who indulges in such futility has it coming. Some of these “experts” don’t really care about the safety of others either. I remember many years ago, seeing in Rabat, near St. Paul’s church, at the end of the zuntier a store full of fireworks right next door to people’s houses.
The funny thing if they stopped making the noisy petards that everyone hates so much, fireworks factories would be much safer. The silent coloured fireworks are orders of magnitude less volatile.
Eh imma jekk il-bomba ma tkunx qawwija, Ommna Santa Marija ma tismaghhiex.
HP, Tghid it-tlett spluzjonijiet tal-bierah semghethom? Malta kollha semghethom.
what’s the problem?! Let THEM blow themselves up… it’s their choice…one thing is for sure: they are NOT heroes…
The problem is that some innocent bystander might get blown up with them.
Some may say that accidents will happen. The same accident that happens one or twice may be acceptable. Three times or more of the same accident means that there is something very wrong somewhere.
I suppose those enthusiasts dedicating their time to this very risky and dangerous hobby, know what they are risking.So God bless them let them carry on.
However, what is important is that others do not suffer on account of this selfish attitude. Remember the illegal storage of fireworks in Naxxar? Homes were destroyed and a woman died.
With all due apologies to the victims of these accidents. And yes, I enjoy watching the fireworks and appreciate the art and skill in the final product. But what about the manufacturing process?
Why are there so many accidents?
I am sure there are numerous industries in Malta manufacturing and dealing with dangerous products. Why are they not blowing up at the rate fireworks factories are? Something is obviously wrong here. And what abut the lack of safeguards for the unsuspecting public? I think it is only divine justice that there have been no innocent victims.
But it is a matter of time.
On saying that what short memories we have. The rubble and rocks raining down on villas in Gharghur. The Naxxar woman? What does the fireworks society have to say about that? Complete silence. Though I abhor government intervention, in such cases where there is a clear danger to the public, the government has the duty to intervene. And not just by forking out taxpayers’ money after the fact. Some consolation. But, the gov must make the fireworks society directly accountable once and for all. I know I am repeating but I stil find the Naxxar incident sickening and unbelievable.
L-aqwa li we show our teeth with the skinny dipping students. WOW! And the church? Their silence and apparent lack of interest. It is not enough to wash their hands by saying they have nothing to do with the outdoor activities. Come on! The government and the church are losing all credibility on the issue. Mandy Mallia just pointed out another sickeningly worrying issue. The transport of fireworks. I just shudder at the thought.
I remember having a chat to someone who worked with fireworks once. What he had to say was interesting. Not because it defended the idea of having untrained people working with fireworks, but more because it showed how there is such a culture clash on such issues.
Making fireworks in Malta seems to be seen as a a real tradition, and like most traditions its rules and techniques are handed down from one generation to another. So when some scientist looking official walks up to them and starts talking chemicals it feels, to them, that their tradition is being taken away from them.
This happens a lot in Malta since both sides don t really know how to make themselves clear enough and there is a popular attitude of accusing the one talking technical language of being uptight, a know it all, a snob and stupid for studying things that their fathers taught them when they were young. Likewise when the official is met with opposition they seem to think that these people are stupid for insisting on ignoring their advice which is there to stop people from getting killed!
Talking science has a habit of disenchanting a tradition. These people who work in firework factories know that the red powder and the blue powder don’t go. They might not fully know all the science behind it but they just know that the red stuff and the blue stuff shouldnt be mixed because that’s what their father or uncle etc… told them. They didn’t need to go to university to learn that. Start making them learn chemistry and suddenly they are up in arms and annoyed at the government for making them study something they just learnt from being around the place often.
The question is, can science and tradition work hand in hand? In this case, is it possible to make things safe for everyone and at the same time help those who make the fireworks retain their sense of tradition? Should they all be trained or should there just be someone who oversees everything who is trained, allowing the rest to carry on doing what they, their fathers and their father’s fathers have been doing?
Whatever the answer though, I think those who make the fireworks have to understand- people have died. Other people who live hear these factories may be at risk, and clearly their tradition is not as public friendly as they like to think it is.
I say give up tradition and give people the safety they deserve. Life sucks that way. But it sucks a lot more for those whose loved ones have died. They have been given the chance to prove that their work is safe and that these accidents are an exception, but they have failed.
What you are saying makes perfect sense. These people have no knowledge of chemistry. When confronted with this they say that theirs is an art not a science. I would not give a toss about these people killing themselves but they make life miserable for the rest of us.
How right you are. Certain traditions here in Malta are passed on from one generation to another with no professional expertise involved. I mean for crying out loud, it’s not a culinary recipe one is passing on…but a recipe for disaster unfortunately.
Yes, science and tradition make a perfect couple, as one has a hands on experience while the science part educates a person’s understanding as to why ‘red and blue pwder don’t mix’.
As I commented earlier on, I do not agree on a total ban of fireworks. However stringent laws and responsibility MUST apply.
‘They have been given the chance to prove that their work is safe and that these accidents are an exception, but they have failed.’
The fact is that fireworks enthusiasts do not want their hobby to be safe, because that would take away part of the fun. The ‘danger’ ‘aura’ that surrounds this activity distinguishes those who practice it from the rest of the feast enthusiasts. Pity that this puts all of us in danger as well.
I was once in Lugano (Swotzerland) and the hotel receptionist offered me and my wife tickets for a fireworks display on the lake. After, on returning to the hotel he asked whether we enjoyed it. I think that he noticed a slight smile on my face and he asked me from which country we were. When I mentioned Malta he said he was ashamed because the month before, Maltese fireworks won first prize in a show on the same lake!
I still remember the tragic accident when an army launch was taking illegal fireworks to be dumped at sea. In that accident a soldier lost his life in the explosion on board.His fiance and myself worked in the same office. Quite a shock!
Whenever a fireworks factroy goes up in smoke we hear and read a lot of comments. My opinion is that Malta is not big enough to have all these factories. Another thing is that both parties whether in government or in opposition don’t want to restrict these people because they mean votes. So we had explosions and we will have them. Amen.
The Mosta fireworks factory was state of the art , it exploded.
A barge from where fireworks were let off exploded in the heart of Sliema.
St Sebastian fire works factory blew up, two died.
In Gharghur a dilettante/hunter lights up a petard in a fit, no one dies, but the factory explodes.
A court appointed fire works EXPERT dies of burns.
The Zejtun factory blew up some months ago, one died.
Are we waiting for the Lija fireworks factory to do a Hiroshima in the middle of a densely populated area?
When will the St Andrews fireworks factory (which is right behind the Lufthansa hangar and metres away from a growing ‘entertainment’ spot) going to blow up?
What will happen if the other Luqa fireworks factory just under Garibaldi road explodes?
How many children, mainly young boys do we need to maim with petards to stop this ‘delizzju’?
How many ‘hero’ funerals do we have to attend?
My point is that even if we have chemists and experts working in a state of the art fireworks factory, the risk of killing or maiming someone remains high.
Life is priceless. Stop encouraging this crazy hobby. Stop the competitions, your contributions for the fireworks and start encouraging them to decorate the village for example.
“A court appointed fire works EXPERT dies of burns.”
When did this tragic accident occur?
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20071129/local/i-did-not-do-anything-wrong-lija-fireworks-victim
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100823/local/boy-suffers-burns-probably-from-fireworks
May I be allowed to repeat myself ?
We need to ascertain that these fanatical hotheads are only free to commit suicide. It is their sacrosant right. No more no less.
If anyone dreams that these dilettanti can ever be stopped from pursuing their delizzju my answer is : MANANA .
In a few days’ time everything will return to normal. There will be a very touching funeral – that’s all
A fireworks enthusiast said that the latest victim died for the love of Maria Assunta. The absence of other people’s diverse opinion was manifestly not considered of news value by PBS.
We are all conscious that eventually we all have to die and obviously, we are all free to choose the manner we meet Maria Assunta; I am not being cynical, or sarcastic.
However, that gentleman has no right to decide how other people should inevitable die, because of his ignorance, lack of discipline, or infantile approach to faith with the evident attributes of fanaticism. He is a grown man now, and he should know that, and I am sure his parish priest would willingly help him out, to recover a more mature perspective to faith.
This is what we have to keep in mind when we remember the victims of innocent people, in fireworks related tragedies.
.
Authorities should realize the grave dangers of an impeding massive tragedy, inexorably inching forward to a reality.
@ Brian; death of the expert
read here
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20071128/local/lija-fireworks-expert-dies
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20071129/local/i-did-not-do-anything-wrong-lija-fireworks-victim
http://archive.maltatoday.com.mt/midweek/2007/11/28/t3.html
That expert was Mifsud, when the Birkirkara factory blew up some years ago. I was there and saw the person all burnt and unrecognisable. May he rest in peace.
Il-haġa tal-iskant hija kif Alla ppermetta din l-isplużjoni ssir lejliet il-festa t’ommu, sidtna Maria!
Ghax kieku Alla joqghod jindahal f’kull haga li naghmlu ma nistghux ninzammu responsabbli ta’ ghemilna. Din l-idea li Alla jintervjeni qisu xi Superman hi wahda mill-affarijiet li veru titfa’ f’dell ikreh lil kull min ghandu l-fidi Kattolika sincerament ghal qalbu, u mhux juzaha bhala krozza ghal nuqqqasijiet personali jew bhala tarka kontra l-hazen tad-dinja.
Jien Kattoliku prattikanti, pero, jiddispjacini nghidlek, kummenti bhal dan jitfghuna – lili u lil min hu bhali – lura f’mentalita medjevali.
A society cannot permit anyone to risk life and limb unnecessarily. That is why all cars must have airbags and seat belts, cyclists must wear helmets and workers safety boots and hard hats.
I enjoy the colourful fireworks, hate petards as much as the next man and have no particular axe to grind – but no-one in his or her right mind can possibly claim that so many such incidents every year are an acceptable and unavoidable consequence of the activity.
Contrary to the hunting problem, there is a way to ‘have your cake and eat it’ here. As I see it, all that needs to be done is to have only one state of the art manufacturing facility, run by highly trained and experienced staff, that is ‘shared’ and financed in a co-operative manner by all the ‘festa’ groups.
The present ‘delettanti’, if suitably qualified at least as they are now, will be able to have their firework designs manufactured under their supervision and even directly assisting the professionals in the construction as long as the proposed design is approved as safe by the professionals.
This will permit all the explosive elements to be stored and utilised in perfectly controlled climatic conditions using the safest practices in existence.
With proper planning there will not be the need for long term storage of large quantities of explosive materials and also, with correct monitoring, it should be possible to stop foolish individuals carrying fireworks around in normal vehicles and even store them in their own garages.
Idealistic I know, a pipe dream maybe, but feasible none the less.
Just rememberedthe name of the soldier who lost his life during duty taking illegal confiscated fireworks out to sea; his name is William Simpson – say a prayer please.
What’s next? Banning knives and vehicles? I, for one, love fireworks display. However, I also appreciate that too many are dying.
Regulation is the key. The production of fireworks has to be regulated and such regulation has to be enforced. It is as simple and as complicated at that.
However, banning something because people have died because of it is pure and sheer madness.
Please write your next article – am having withdrawal symptoms!
[Daphne – I was on holiday, and that includes no computers and no news from Malta, which is just as well, given that on my return I saw that most of the newspapers were stuffed full of largely false and self-seeking hagiographies.]
“….largely false and self-seeking hagiographies.”
Which is precisely why we need an article on this.
“On my return I saw that most of the newspapers were stuffed full of largely false and self-seeking hagiographies.”
You mean on the lines of how worse off the world would have been without a certain emeritus?
You’re lucky, I spent the week gagging!
IN Nar huwa arti.din hija kultura maltija.ghandkom tkunu tafu li ahna l maltin IC CHAMPIONS TA DINJA FIN NAR.MELA LEWWEL HAWN CERTU NIES IMMORRU FESTI U NITPAXXEW BIN NAR IMBGHAD META JSIR ACCIDENT KULHADD JOQMOS.GHANDKOM RAGUN SA CERTU PUNT IMMA NAR MA JISTAX JINQATA GHALIEX HUWA L QALBA TA KULL FESTA MALTIJA.
GRAZZI
PIPPO
MY FATHER COSTANTINO MIFSUD WAS THE COURT APPOINTED EXPLOSIVE EXPERT.
YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF TO SAY THAT MY FATHER WAS NOT BURNT YOU LIAR. MY FATHER ARRIVED AT THE FIREWORKS FACTORY MINUTES BEFORE IT BLEW UP. THE PERSON BURNT WAS JOE BRINCAT. MY FATHER’S CAUSE OF DEATH WAS A BROKEN SPINE. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF FOR SUCH A BLATANT LIE. I HAD TO IDENTIFY MY FATHER AND I CAN SWEAR HE WASN’T BURNT. I HAVE A COPY OF THE DEATH CERTIFICATE. JOE BRINCAT SPENT WEEKS IN HOSPITAL BURNT FROM HIS CHEST UPWARDS.
PIPPO
MY FATHER COSTANTINO MIFSUD WAS THE COURT APPOINTED EXPLOSIVE EXPERT.
YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF TO SAY THAT MY FATHER WAS BURNT YOU LIAR. MY FATHER ARRIVED AT THE FIREWORKS FACTORY MINUTES BEFORE IT BLEW UP. THE PERSON BURNT WAS JOE BRINCAT. MY FATHER’S CAUSE OF DEATH WAS A BROKEN SPINE. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF FOR SUCH A BLATANT LIE. I HAD TO IDENTIFY MY FATHER AND I CAN SWEAR HE WASN’T BURNT. I HAVE A COPY OF THE DEATH CERTIFICATE. JOE BRINCAT SPENT WEEKS IN HOSPITAL BURNT FROM HIS CHEST UPWARDS.
The message delivered is one. Fireworks have nothing to do with the religion of Jesus Christ.
Fireworks in Malta is another belief in Jihad. Which means that fireworks are manufactured to one’s own use and to one’s own satisfection and dangers.
We understand that such dangers creat satisfection, but please, do not involve others.
If you do not respect yourself and your family, go to your own private place to put bombs. And not next to mine. If you willing to die burnt, that’s your own choice.