Gas leak reports at Mater Dei: 'just sewage system malfunction'

Chris Fearne addressed the gas leak incident during a press conference earlier today

Media reports of a gas leak at Mater Dei’s Emergency Department were nothing more than a sewage system malfunction that caused unbearable smells at the hospital.

Yesterday, the Accident and Emergency Department operated at a reduced level due to a technical that required the evacuation of part of the department. It was established that the cause of the foul smell that filled the department’s corridors was a drainage pipe breakage.

Health Minister Chris Fearne, who earlier today addressed a press conference at the hospital, explained that the S-bend of one of the drainage pipes came loose, causing the evacuator of the area to pick up the smell.

Mater Dei’s protocol requires that patients be evacuated when a foreign odour is picked up, chief executive Ivan Falzon continued.

“The surrounding area was evacuated for a few hours until the pipe was fixed,” Fearne said.