‘Falling scrap metal, leaching oils’: Life next to Marsa scrapyard before fire

An animal feed cooperative next door to the Marsa scrapyard that caught fire last week says it has long contended with scrap metal falling into its property and hazardous oils leaching in when it rains.

The dangers were highlighted in a December 2024 judicial protest filed against scrapyard operators JAC Steel and Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA).

Apart from the OHSA, government land administrators Indis and the state advocate were also notified of the dangers, eleven months before the scrapyard caught fire for a second time.

Koperattiva Produtturi tal-Ħalib (KPĦ) said in the protest that the piles of scrap metal frequently exceeded the height of a dividing wall between the two properties by a significant margin.

It urged the authorities to act before anyone got hurt. 

The scrap metal was at times allowed to rest on the wall, causing masonry to become dislodged and posing a danger to workers in the animal feed warehouse.

Scrap metal even fell over the dividing wall on occasions, particularly when it was being piled up by heavy machinery used by the scrap operator.

Rainfall would often cause oils allowed to accumulate at the scrapyard to leach into the neighbouring property.

KPĦ warned in the judicial protest that the continued situation was endangering its workers, who risked injury on a daily basis due to the rampant abuse by JAC Steel.

The cooperative said the scrapyards operators were well aware of these dangers, having been asked many a time to remedy them.

KPĦ said the authorities too had been asked to intervene, yet despite seeing the dangers for themselves during site visits, no action was taken.

It warned that an urgent solution was needed before a tragedy takes place.

The cooperative demanded that all scrap metal be removed from near the dividing wall, any damage to the wall repaired, and the height of the scrap metal reduced.

In reply to the judicial protest, the OHSA appeared to play down the concerns raised.

The OHSA said it was “very active” in doing its job, having carried out a “number of inspections” at the site in question.

“…as it has done in the past, the authority will continue to ensure that health and safety measures are implemented,” the OHSA assured.

It added that the structural issues when it came to the dividing wall do not fall under its competence.

Operators JAC Steel dismissed the claims made by KPĦ as “unfounded”.

The operator denied storing scrap metal in an irregular manner, including piling it up higher than the dividing wall with KPĦ.

JAC Steel also denied having been warned about the “alleged risks” by KPĦ prior to receiving the judicial protest.