Smaller petards expected to make much less noise

The smaller size of petards should bring about a noticeable reduction in their booming sound, fireworks enthusiasts have told The Times.

"It will make a big difference," Pyrotechnics Association president Joe Theuma said, a view echoed by fireworks enthusiast Joseph Mangion.

New regulations, expected to be published today, will reduce the size of loud petards, known as tal-bomba, from six to five inches in a bid to dampen their force.

The rules will also limit the number of loud petards fired in one session to six, apart from the three minutes of the salute.

An explosives expert said the one-inch reduction in the size of petards means they would no longer be heard from other villages.

The regulations will also give more clout to the fireworks' inspectorate to enforce regulations and recommendations that apply to fireworks factories.

Mr Mangion hailed the strengthening of the inspectorate, although he insisted self-regulation was imperative.

"It is up to those who make fireworks to want safety because their lives are at stake. They can try to fool the inspectors but in the end they would only be fooling themselves because they may pay with their lives," he said.

Lawyer Stefan Camilleri, who is representing residents whose homes were damaged by a fireworks factory explosion in Għargħur in 2007, said it was imperative inspectors checked what petards were being manufactured to ensure safety for those living in the vicinity.

He insisted that the present law, which only defined as residential an area where 100 people lived, was unconstitutional.

The new regulations will also reduce the distance from which smaller, less dangerous fireworks can be let off, to at least 100 metres from an inhabited area or public street rather than the current 150 metres.

The explosives expert, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said although accidents could always happen, the smaller distance should not increase safety concerns.

Moreover, fireworks enthusiasts can let off fireworks at 9 a.m. instead of 8 a.m., allowing residents to have another hour of undisturbed sleep.

"On the whole, the regulations are a step forward," Michael Falzon, the legal consultant of the pyrotechnics association, said. He added he would not represent anyone who breached regulations.

The new regulations were outlined by Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici during a press conference yesterday. He said although fireworks could not be excluded from Malta's culture, controls to make them safer could be put into place.