Residents from various localities across Malta reported an insistent foul smell of gas but investigations by Enemalta personnel in the afternoon established there were no leakages and that there was no danger for the public

Several reports were lodged with the police and the Civil Protection Department, including from Valletta, Msida, Iklin, Birkirkara and Rabat.

Enemalta said that after it received reports of gas smells this afternoon, its technical staff went out to investigate all of the corporation's installations. They visited several towns and villages using gas detectors and the investigations established that there was no danger for the public.

Further investigations were carried out, including on a site where Mercaptan was deposited in the morning and these also established that there was no danger. The corporation's engineers were on site throughout the process and there was no leakage at any time. This process, the corporation said, was carried out following consultations with the competent authorities.

Mercaptan is the harmless, non-toxic chemical that is added to natural gas to make it easier to detect in case of a leak.

Earlier, the Labour Party's Environment spokesman Leo Brincat in a statement said the government should determine and explain without further delay what led to the smells.

The matter was more urgent when one considered that this could affect the people's health. One hoped that the Civil Protection Department, the police and Enematla would publicly declare the result of their investigations to put the people's minds at rest as soon as possible.

It was shameful that such a development had to be announced by an online newspaper instead of through an official statement from the authorities.An Enemalta spokesman said the corporation's personnel were checking to see whether the cause of the smell was something for which it was responsible, he said.