Storm Harry destroyed some sewage infrastructure, WSC says

Malta's wastewater infrastructure was significantly damaged by Storm Harry's gale-force winds, Water Services Corporation said on Wednesday. 

A sewage pumping station in Marfa was completely destroyed, the WSC said, as was a biogas dome at a wastewater treatment plant in  Xgħajra. Other pumping stations also sustained damage.

The damage also impacted some of WSC's water infrastructure: seawell rooms near a Reverse Osmosis facility in Pembroke also sustained damage. 

WSC engineers have yet to accurately assess the destruction of the Marfa pumping station as the area was still inaccessible on Wednesday, given its proximity to the sea. 

The pumping station in Marfa left destroyed as a result of Storm Harry. Photo: WSC spokesperson

Wastewater pumping stations such as that destroyed in Marfa are used to move sewage through WSC's network of pipes to treatment plants when gravity flow is lacking. 

Seawell rooms are coastal facilities that house wells, pumps and control equipment used to and draw seawater from underground facilities near the shore. That water is then pumped to Reverse Osmosis water treatment facilities. 

The biogas dome destroyed in Xgħajra is part of the €85 million Ta' Barkat treatment plant .  It processes sludge from the sewage treatment plant and generates biogas, which is in turn used to generate electricity that is then used to treat sewage at the plant.

The WSC said repairs will begin as soon as the sites are safe and accessible.

"During the storm, our teams remained on duty and responded to all customer requests, despite dangerous conditions," the company said on social media.