According to the Bathing Water Directive, the Environmental Health Directorate within the Superintendence of Public Health wishes to notify that, until further notice, bathing is not recommended due to sewage overflow that could have affected the bathing water quality and might present a risk to bathers’ health. Necessary works which identified the source of the problem – material that should not have been disposed of in the main sewer – were carried out by the Water Services Corporation and also included the cleaning of the beach.
It turned out that a baby nappy wrapped in a towel was deliberately thrown, probably by opening a manhole cover. This irresponsible, premeditated act not only disrupted services but also caused a drainage blockage, which in turn resulted in the beach being flooded. The WSC has filed a police report, and the authorities are currently reviewing the CCTV footage from the area.
As a precaution the beach was closed, and samples were taken to determine if the water quality was affected. At this stage it cannot be predicted if the sewage overflow has reached the sea.
Site Code: A12
Location: St George’s Bay, Birżebbuġa
Signs indicating the area have been fixed in the area. When the quality will be good for swimming, the signs will be removed and another press release will be issued to notify the public that the site is again fit for bathing.
For further information, the public is kindly requested to contact the Health Inspectorate Services between 8:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on telephone number 21337333 or by email on [email protected]. The public is also being invited to access the Directorate’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ EHDMalta or our official website at https://environmentalhealth. gov.mt for similar information.
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