Government made aware of substandard concrete at Bormla elderly home almost two years ago

Architect Stephen Buhagiar expressed his concerns about the quality of the concrete at the Cospicua elderly home, stating that it fell below the expected standards, according to a report presented in Parliament.

Active Ageing Minister Jo Etienne Abela tabled the report from Social Projects Management Ltd, for the 1997 Bormla Elderly home, dated September 2, 2021, on Wednesday, when answering parliamentary questions.

Carried during ongoing works, the report highlighted that the balconies on Triq San Guzepp and Triq il-Konservatorju, as well as the beams on the fifth-floor terrace, were in a much worse condition than anticipated.

The most significant concern was the strength of the concrete," Buhagiar added.

The majority of the building's systems were installed during its original construction in the late 1990s, according to he report, and are now approaching the end of their lifespan.

The architect emphasised the urgent need to develop a plan for replacing these systems, highlighting the lack of fire safety measures and calling for immediate action to align the building with modern standards of fire safety, ventilation, and lighting.

The report also indicates that the plumbing, drainage, lifts, data network, kitchen, laundry, electrical power, and lighting systems were consistently in need of repair and would require a comprehensive overhaul.

Addressing parliament, Minister Abela explained that Terracore Ltd had been commissioned to conduct concrete tests on several balconies of the property. The results revealed that two samples did not pass the coring test, while the remaining samples yielded results that were deemed unacceptable.

MaltaToday reported on Wednesday, how the government officially submitted its plans to demolish and rebuild the Bormla residential home for the elderly. 

The application filed with the Planning Authority specifies that the new home will have the same number of floors and volume as the existing building. It will retain the same use as well. 

The application which was published on the PA’s website in the past days was originally presented on 7 February 2023 before protests by elderly residents objecting to their removal from the home. 

The Nationalist Party was among the first to criticise the government's decision to move the residents and called for an inquiry to assess the true state of the home.

After learning the true reason behind the move, the PN accused the government of lacking transparency on the matter and of concealing the decision until it was exposed.

PN MP Paula Mifsud Bonnici directly questioned the Minister, on Wednesday, about the delay in relocating the residents, considering that the government was already aware of the hazardous condition of the structure.