Watch: Caravan destroyed in 'huge explosion' during fireworks display

A man has recounted how his caravan was destroyed in a “huge explosion” after an unexploded firework landed on or close to it during feast celebrations last week.

The man, who asked not to be named, said there was “absolutely nothing left” of his caravan after it was blown to pieces in the explosion last Wednesday night during a fireworks display.

The incident occurred during St Helen's feast celebrations in Birkirkara, when, it is believed, an unexploded firework landed on or close by the caravan before going off.

Photos of the site show a heap of blackened debris, with only metal poles left of the caravan that used to be in the field.

The man, whose field lies between San Ġwann and Birkirkara, said his neighbour was “washing dishes when he suddenly saw a flame come down from the sky and seconds later the whole thing [caravan] went up in a huge ball of fire”.

“My neighbour was extremely shocked because he knew that I could have been inside,” said the caravan owner, who explained he would sometimes sleep in the caravan.

The man had prepared for the firework display, clearing the site of dry vegetation, but said a recycling bag and a cardboard box had been left behind the caravan, which he speculated may have caught fire and set off the caravan’s gas canister. 

“There’s some stainless steel left, but everything else has gone – some of the glass has even melted… I definitely would not have survived if I had been in the caravan at the time,” the man said. 

He added that the firework display operators had raced over to the scene, appearing shocked and “very relieved” he had not been there at the time of the incident. He said they had been “very nice” about the incident and were assisting him with an insurance claim.

A police spokesperson told Times of Malta that a report of the incident ascribed the explosion to an unexploded firework that had ignited upon hitting the ground.

A video posted to a popular Facebook group the night of the incident, captured shortly after the initial explosion, shows the fire from a distance, with social media user Daniel Ayres posting: "Anyone know what just blew up massively in the distance?"

Ayres told Times of Malta he had been working late when he "looked out of my window and saw what looked like a mushroom cloud", likening the view to a scene from popular video game Fallout.

Maltese Fireworks Association president Godfrey Farrugia said that while such incidents were possible, they did not take place often as operators “take a lot of precautions”, noting displays were “rigorously controlled” by police permits and operators.

Such incidents could be caused by physical debris, embers from exploded fireworks or so-called “blind shells” – where a shell or part of a multi-shot firework does not explode – falling to ground, he explained.

He said the fall-out “greatly depends” on wind direction and speed, which could change midway through displays.

Farrugia stressed that while uncommon, such incidents “can happen anywhere in the world”, but that in Malta, due to its long fireworks season and dry conditions, such incidents might happen more frequently.

He emphasised that all fireworks displays in Malta were covered by insurance, adding fireworks were “deeply rooted” in Maltese culture.