Three years after being accused of triggering a false alarm over the stability of a high-rise building in Sliema, a geologist has reiterated his concerns after a coastal cave collapsed at the foot of this block.
However, the developer, MIDI plc has once again dismissed the warning, saying the incident had “no impact” on the building’s structural integrity. Nonetheless, it has filed a development application to carry out “remedial works” on a “deteriorated concrete wall” along the building’s outer perimeter, at the exact spot of the cave’s collapse.
In 2016, geologist Peter Gatt had sounded a warning over MIDI’s Q2 tower block in Tigné close to The Point shopping centre saying he had never seen a building constructed in such manner anywhere in the world.
At the time, Dr Gatt had expressed concern that the high-rise had been constructed over a fractured and eroded sea cliff, which could collapse any time soon.
If this were to happen, the geologist had warned, there would be nothing holding the high-rise above it.
Three years down the line the controversy was rekindled after Malta Today reported that a coastal cave forming part of the sea cliff had collapsed, sparking an immediate reaction from Dr Gatt.
“Not heeding to geological advice is costly and damaging,” he said on Facebook.
“This problem was predictable but overlooked by the high-rise development over the sea cave. My comments in 2016 are now confirmed,” the geologist added.
Moreover, he pointed out that back then MIDI had even sent him a letter in which he had been told they had “suffered damages” as a result of his “completely unfounded and unsubstantiated” claims.
Cave collapses due to sea erosion- MIDI
MIDI blames sea erosion
Faced by fresh concerns, a MIDI spokeswoman told Times of Malta the Q2 apartment block “was built on solid, proper and adequate foundations that took into consideration the geology of the area”.
MIDI said the block’s pillar foundations were driven nine metres into the rock, which was significantly below and some distance away (inland) from the fissured rock surface and sea cave.
According to MIDI, the cave collapsed due to sea erosion, rather than a result of the development itself as suggested in some quarters. Moreover, the spokeswoman insisted this had no impact on the structural integrity of the block and the underlying basement, “as the structure was designed to act independently of the surrounding geological conditions”.
MIDI also pointed out that the Dean of the Faculty of the Built Environment at the University of Malta, Alex Torpiano, had also described Dr Gatt’s claims as unfounded, when the Times of Malta had sought his opinion in 2016.
As for the nature of the proposed works, the spokeswoman said these were intended to protect the concrete basement wall underlying the perimeter of the walkway in front of the high-rise.
“The works MIDI is proposing to carry out, at its sole cost, involve the repair and protection of the concrete basement wall and the placement of hardstone boulders and armour units to form a wave dissipation slope to mitigate the impact of the waves during northeasterly storms,” she said.