Sewage has been seeping into the basement of an apartment block in Sliema, residents have reported, close to the Qui-si-Sana bathing spot where waste outflow in the water has repeatedly forced the closure of the beach.
Residents of 70 Tower Road, Sliema who spoke on condition of anonymity said that last week, foul-smelling water started seeping through the wall of the basement of the building and began spreading through a shared garage complex.
“We are all very concerned,” said a woman who owns one of the garages in the building.
“This is a block of nine apartments and many of us are elderly and there are even families with young children. It is a serious health issue and the authorities must really try to find the source of the problem and fix it.”
The apartment building is right across the street from the Qui-si-Sana bathing spot, which, throughout June and July, was closed off to bathers by the Environmental Health Directorate for days at a time.
Following repeated tests, the health authorities declared the site fit for bathing again at the beginning of this week.
Residents have questioned whether the sewage issues they are experiencing are connected to ongoing works at the site of the former Regina Hotel nearby.
The condominium manager of 70 Tower Road said there had been flooding on the Regina Hotel site and a pump was installed to get rid of the water.
The authorities are still carrying out tests to determine whether this is connected to the effluence in Qui-si-Sana, he has been told.
A spokesperson for the Water Services Corporation told Times of Malta that the incident in question is not part of WSC’s networks and that its officials were only on-site to assist the health authorities.
The health ministry has not responded to a request for comment about the incident.
The landowner of the Regina Hotel site, Anthony Fenech, said that, though he is not present during works, to his knowledge the site itself has not experienced sewage issues and that only a mobile toilet is connected to the sewer line.
Questions sent to the contractor overseeing the works, Attard Brothers, were also not answered at the time of writing.
Sliema resident and Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar coordinator Astrid Vella said the NGO had been reporting the issue of sewage overflowing into residences and garages ever since the nearby Townsquare project “had reared its ugly head” in the already overdeveloped area.
“When MEPA had brought over a Chicago expert in high-rise construction his conclusion had been that Malta should not consider the intensification of high-rise buildings until it provides the necessary infrastructure of drains, water, electricity and adequate public transport,” she said.