A local man was fortunate to escape unhurt after he fell into an open manhole on an Attard street on Tuesday afternoon. 

The man, who asked to remain anonymous, was looking for a particular building on Triq il-Kappella tal-Mirakli when he went plunging down the open and unguarded hole. 

“It was open and not protected, and there were no works in progress in that time,” he told Times of Malta. “I hurt both my legs but nothing was broken.” 

Uncovered shaft in Attard pavement.

The man said that he had reached out to Times of Malta in the hope of warning others about the hazard and flagging the matter to authorities. 

Attard mayor Stefan Corrdina told Times of Malta that the shaft was privately owned, despite being on a public road, and said he suspected its cover was blown off during Tuesday's windy weather.

By Wednesday afternoon, the cover was back in place and the danger removed. 

The shaft on Wednesday. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli