Eight years ago today nine men lost their lives at Malta Drydocks. But human life was not the only toll the tragedy took - the lives of others were irreversibly changed.

And relatives of those who died, and those who were injured, are still battling for compensation.

Reuben Mallia, then 24, of Gudja, today limps back home to his wife and young son at the end of a day's work on much lighter duties. He is lucky to be alive, having been blown off the deck of the 3,148-tonne Libyan tanker Um El Faroud in Dock 3 on February 3, 1995.

The explosion is believed to have been caused by an accumulation of gas which ignited at about 10.30 p.m., devastating the mid and bow sections of the vessel.

At the time Mr Mallia was planning to get married and was building his home, but his plans were thrown off course as he spent almost two years going in and out of hospital before recovering and resuming his plans for the future. The wounds healed but the consequences of being unable to do hard work linger on.

The explosion, which was among the worst accidents involving multiple victims, had killed nine drydocks workers aged between 22 and 58 and left many injured, two of them critically.

The nine victims were Carmelo Callus, 47, of Valletta, George Aquilina, 25, of Qormi, Simon Pisani, 22, of Msida, Simon Mifsud, 27, of Vittoriosa, Mario Hales, 40, of Mqabba, Angelo Sciberras, 52, of Zabbar, George Xuereb, 58, of Qormi, Paul Seguna, 37, of Zebbug, and Anthony Vassallo, 30, of Dingli.

Seven were killed instantly and two - Mr Xuereb and Mr Seguna - died at St Luke's Hospital.

Mr Mallia and Toni Bonnici, 41, of Msida, were critically injured.

Relatives of victims and injured workers who still suffer the consequences of the blast had filed applications in court requesting the drydocks and the Libyan owners of the Um El Faroud, the General National Maritime Transport Company, to pay them compensation.

But relatives feel that a long time has passed since the accident without any compensation being given. They received insurance money, for which the workers had themselves paid, but which, however, was not considered to be enough in the circumstances.

An inquiry conducted by then Magistrate Noel Cuschieri, found in a report presented on January 5, 1996 that the 'yard was mainly responsible for the explosion.

The inquiry found that four 'yard employees could be asked to answer to charges of manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm and that working practices on hot work had led to the explosion. Employees were trained under a fallacious and inadequate system and the inquiry termed this an extenuating circumstance in any eventual criminal responsibility. GNMTC was found minimally responsible.

Mr Mallia, who remained partially disabled, said that though he was still in employment, his earning potential was weakened.

"I cannot play or run with my own son because of a disability certified as 50 per cent," he said.

He said he was trying hard to put the ordeal behind him.

"I am more interested in what I can get in compensation for the money I lost from overtime as a result of having to leave my job as a welder," he said. Mr Mallia now works as a storekeeper.

He does not feel that he was to blame for anything. "I was certainly not injured as a result of my negligence. All I know is that I suffered a lot and am still suffering," Mr Mallia said.

Melvyn Fenech, 31, of Rabat, who is certified 35 per cent disabled after being injured in the blast, said that as time passed he tended to lose hope.

"Although the court process had to take its course it was discouraging to have to wait for so long knowing that what happened had caused me to lose money in overtime earnings and allowances."

"My disability has caused me to change my job although I am still employed at the shipyard.

"What irks me is the fact that time is flying and from my point of view it seems that nothing is being done. Our only contact is our lawyers who try to keep us abreast of any developments regarding claims.

"In my situation, I cannot work as I used to before the accident and there is no chance that I can do a part time job," Mr Fenech said.

"What I and others like me want is justice. That things get moving," he said.

Mr Fenech said that all he had received since the accident was Lm7,000 in insurance money. The nine injured workers received insurance payments ranging from Lm5,000 to Lm10,000, depending on their age and level of disability.

Similar views were echoed by Francis Spiteri, 32, of Marsaxlokk, who was also seriously injured. A bad knee injury had prevented him from continuing his work as a spray painter on board vessels.

As in the case of others he was transferred to other duties, with the consequence that he earns less in overtime.

"The situation is very worrying especially because court proceedings entail expenses," he said.

He added that he was very realistic in the sense that accidents did happen but at least compensation should be paid to make up for the hardship and losses suffered.

The brother of one of the victims who preferred not to be named said too much time was being allowed to pass.

"It is not right when someone suffers as a result of events for which an individual is not to blame. Investigations were carried out and the results are known," he said.

In 1998, the Um El Faroud was removed from Dock 3 and scuttled at Wied iz-Zurrieq.

The first of the victims' families to file a writ for damages in the civil court against the Drydocks and GNMTC were the widow and daughters of Mario Hales.

Hales' widow and daughters claimed the explosion was caused as a result of negligence on the part of defendants because they had not provided a safe system of work on the vessel or formal instructions to drydocks employees.