Street in front of Mercury House closed amid report of broken glass during storm

Updated 2.25pm

Civil Protection Department (CPD) officers were forced to cordon off the road in front of Mercury Towers on Saturday night as a safety precaution following reports of broken glass on the street during a storm that saw gale-force winds batter the island.

A spokesperson for Mercury House Ltd denied reports that any glass fell from its buildings, however, saying "that at no point did any glass or other material fall from the entire Mercury Towers complex or the hotel".

CPD officers were called to the busy Paceville area at around 7.30pm. No injuries were reported.

The officers closed the road in front of the British-era Mercury House, which lies under Mercury Towers, for fear that any falling debris could pose a danger to pedestrians and motorists.

The street remained closed for around two and a half hours while emergency workers cleared the debris and assessed the site. The area was eventually deemed safe and reopened to traffic by 10pm.

When Times of Malta visited the site on Sunday morning, there were no signs of damage to the historic building, but several glass panes appeared to have been fastened together.

Mercury House Ltd said in a statement Sunday that while CPD officers had visited the site, no glass had fallen from any building in the complex. 

"When the Civil Protection arrived on site, they observed a pane of glass on the second floor of Mercury House that could potentially pose a risk", a spokesperson said.

"Consequently, temporary precautionary measures were taken so that, should the wind intensify, there would be no danger to the public. Following these measures, the Civil Protection determined that there was no risk to the public, and the road was reopened and returned to normal."

The British-era building lies beneath Zaha Hadid's Mercury tower. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier

The night was characterised by a biting chill and overcast conditions.

While the temperature officially dipped to as low as 10°C, the wind chill factor made it feel as cold as 7°C in exposed areas like Gozo.

The islands were also flushed with isolated rain showers and very rough sea conditions, with waves peaking at over six metres, forcing the Gozo ferry to completely suspend operations overnight.

A video posted to Facebook page It-Temp Madwarna ("The Weather Around Us"), attributed to Darren Bonnici, shows strong waves hitting Ċirkewwa on Saturday night.

Widespread disruption but no injuries

While the incident in St Julian’s was the most significant safety concern of the night, the storm also caused minor damage across the islands.

The CPD received multiple reports of uprooted trees and broken branches across various localities.

And in Sliema, St Julian's, and along the northern coastline, several parked motorbikes were blown over by gusts that reached force 9.

Despite the hazardous conditions, no injuries or major accidents caused by the storm were reported overnight.

The storm has begun to subside, though a strong breeze is forecast to continue throughout Sunday.