A powerful explosion tore through the Ta’ Lourdes fireworks factory in the Magħtab area of Malta at around 6:30 am on Monday, 1 June 2026. The factory was destroyed in the blast.

The initial explosion was followed by a series of smaller blasts, sending a thick plume of white and grey smoke high into the sky. The force of the blast shattered windows, damaged doors, and caused structural damage to properties across the surrounding area.

Two men, aged 67 and 47, both residents of St Paul’s Bay, were in nearby fields at the time and were rushed to Mater Dei Hospital. Both were certified as suffering from minor injuries. Police confirmed that none of the factory’s licensed workers was on site when the explosion occurred.

Farmers and breeders in the surrounding area also reported structural damage to their farms, and several animals — including birds, rabbits, and dairy cows — perished as a result of the blast.

A magisterial inquiry is underway while police, the Civil Protection Department, the Armed Forces of Malta, and medical teams remain on site. Authorities continue to urge the public to avoid the area.

A Reminder About Explosive Storage Risks

Fireworks compositions are classified as Class 1 Explosives under the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods, the IMDG Code, and ADR. Some fireworks may even have mass explosion hazard, division 1.1.

Incidents like this reinforce why the physical separation requirements for explosives storage, manufacturing, and inhabited buildings exist — and why compliance with those separation distances is not merely administrative, but life-critical.

The cause of the Malta explosion is under investigation.