No one injured in Valletta vacant building collapse

Residents at the lower end of St Ursula Street in Valletta relived a trauma they had gone through 12 years ago when several floors in a vacant tenement block caved in during Saturday night, jolting them out of their beds.

No one was injured.

Although the residents in the building were moved out some time ago because of its dangerous state, the ground floor is still used by a retired carpenter, Leli Grima known as ta' Kristjanu.

"If this had happened earlier, Leli would probably have been a victim because he was working here yesterday," a neighbour said.

The whole block of buildings at this end of St Ursula Street had been condemned as unsafe except for one house and a block that was built four years ago in place of the one that collapsed 12 years ago.

"On that day, I was talking to a neighbour in the street when I noticed fine dust raining down from that block and before we knew it, the block collapsed into the street.

"What's keeping the authorities from knocking these buildings down and building new ones instead? Have lives to be lost before something is done?" the neighbour asked.