Floriana man seriously injured as bomb blows up car in Msida
A man was seriously injured yesterday when the car he was driving was blown up in an explosion in the mid-morning rush hour in Msida.
The incident happened in Marina Street at around 10.30am. The Renault Megane Scenic the man was driving ended up in a ball of fire.
The man, Romeo Bone, from Floriana, aged 40, was taken to hospital for treatment, and his condition is as yet unknown. Eyewitnesses said the man, who is known to the police, was seriously injured and that he had lost both his legs due to the blast.
A Kia Ceres and a Ford Focus were also damaged in the blast, the police said. Five other persons were taken to hospital for treatment after being slightly injured or suffering from shock.
Police were on site and a massive traffic jam piled up in the area for a long period of time.
The accident happened in one of Malta’s main thoroughfares, Msida Valley, which is notorious for traffic congestion. The closing of the stretch caused a long queue of cars at either end, and other roads drivers tried to use to avoid Msida quickly ended up heavily jammed.
People were shocked that the bomb went off on a busy road at a time when the area is full of traffic. It must also be pointed out that many students attending the Sixth Form in Msida cross this road every school morning.
This is the second car bomb explosion this year. In January this year, a 61-year-old man from Ħamrun died after a bomb attached to his car took off in Marsa. The victim was Victor Calleja, also known as Iċ-Chippy.
Last year, three car bomb incidents were recorded. In January, a man died when a bomb went off in his car in Marsascala. A second car bomb severely injured a man in Marsa in September, while a 67-year-old was killed in October in Buġibba.
According to the Nationalist Party, the latest car bomb incident is proof of the danger in which Maltese families are living.
A statement issued by Deputy Leader Beppe Fenech Adami, said this is only the latest in series of car bombs which have occurred in recent months.
“The lack of proper security is a result of the government’s corruption and of a police force being led by a puppet-commissioner who was only appointed to the job because he has no intention of investigating Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri. How can the police commissioner solve such cases if his only interest is to cover up for Joseph Muscat’s sake?”
“It is useless for the police to issue a statement after every car bomb saying the victim is known to the police. This solves absolutely nothing,” Dr Fenech Adami added while insisting that the police force requires serious leadership.