The owner of a house hit by an out-of-control Lamborghini says the horror crash has brought back memories of how his own mother was killed when a truck ploughed into the same property in the 1970s.

Jimmy Apap should have been sleeping above the room that the car smashed into shortly at 12.30am on Wednesday but had decided to sleep elsewhere that night.

And he revealed there had been “countless” crashes into his Żejtun home, a former windmill on a roundabout, but his appeals for better safety measures have all been ignored.

The driver of the car, catering industry tycoon James Barbara, best known as the man behind James Caterers Ltd, and his wife, Michelle, were badly injured in the incident on Triq Bormla.

Apap, who woke up to the sound of a loud crash, said he was unaware of the seriousness of the incident until he heard ambulance sirens and a commotion outside his home, Il-Mitħna Ta’ Birgħelsem.

“I came out and saw the horrific sight in front of me. I saw the car smashed into the wall and people trying to get the passengers out of the car and removing stones and rubble,” he told Times of Malta.

The car hit a street light, smashed through a steel barrier and into the washroom of the house. Rescuers from civil protection had to cut down a tree to reach the passengers, who were both rushed to hospital.

Barbara, 50, suffered grievous injuries while police described his 45-year-old wife’s condition as serious.

The car smashed into the washroom of the windmill where Jimmy Apap lives. Photo: Giulia Magri

The 61-year-old homeowner, meanwhile, said he “thanked God” he had decided to sleep on the other side of the house that night and not in the bedroom just above the room, where remains of the car still lie.

Apap yesterday said the street light ended up on his roof and he now has to remove a gas tank from the room in case the wall collapses further.

But aside from the initial horror of dealing with the car crash in the early hours yesterday, it also brought back memories of his own mother’s tragic death in a similar incident.

“There have been countless accidents, and every one of them reminds me of how we lost my mother when I was just 12,” he said.

“I remember it like it was yesterday. My mother, Maria Dolores, was outside on the front when a truck crashed into the house, killing her on the spot.”

A similar incident happened a few years ago to his dogs.

“They used to sleep in the yard next to the washroom. When that accident happened I thought I had lost them but they were unharmed and we found them shaking with fear in the garden.”

Since then, the dogs have never been left in the yard.

“One moment you are at peace in your home, and the next that peace is disturbed,” he said.

“My brothers and sisters grew up playing in the fields just in front of my house but now all you find are roads and cars.”

He said cars often drive too fast around his house and the original planning decision to turn it into a roundabout was a “huge” mistake.

“We do not even have a zebra crossing for my family to cross the road safely,” he said. “Instead we have to run across the road.”

Apap has spoken to his local council several times to have a safe crossing path but continues to wait.

“I hope that this accident brings change and awareness,” he said.