WATCH | Video shows school hall ceiling where fragments dropped onto students

A video has emerged showing the damaged ceiling of a hall where fragments dropped while dance students were rehearsing at Mikiel Anton Vassalli College (MAVC).

The building at MAVC is part of a larger campus in Hamrun that also houses the Malta Visual and Performing Arts School (MVPA).

On Wednesday, parts of the ceiling fell down on Year 7 students from MVPA during a dance lesson held in the hall. The hall is occasionally used by MVPA students since their school has limited facilities and lacks a functioning theatre.

None of the students were injured in the incident but the dance teacher called off the rehearsal and the class returned back to their school.

In comments released to the media yesterday, the Education Ministry said the matter was “addressed immediately”.

“As soon as the matter was reported, the ministry engaged qualified professionals to carry out the necessary inspections and certification. Following these assessments, the hall has been confirmed to be safe for use,” the ministry said.

The video obtained by MaltaToday was shot on Thursday and in a part that was edited out for privacy reasons, a couple of students can still be seen rehearsing close to the area of the incident.

Parents of MVPA students, who spoke to MaltaToday on condition of anonymity, expressed concern over their children’s wellbeing following the incident.

MVPA is a performing arts school where students between 11 and 15 take dedicated lessons in their chosen art form—music, drama, dance, art and media—along with the normal secondary school curriculum.

Parents and school staff have long called for a theatre to be built as part of the school’s facilities but those calls have fallen on deaf ears. The issue was rekindled last week, when a student from the school, who was taking part in a childrens’ exchange with Prime Minister Robert Abela asked why his school was left without a hall. He received no reply and the discussion moved on to other subjects.

A building that used to serve as a hall in the past was closed down and cannot be used because of safety issues, leaving the school with no adequate performing space. Students hold their performances in venues outside the school.

MaltaToday has obtained several photos showing the interior of the abandoned hall at MVPA.

Last year, the education minister had told parliament that a new theatre would be built and the project would be coordinated between the ministry, the Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools and the National Philharmonic Orchestra. However, no timelines were given.

In a statement on Thursday, Nationalist Party spokespersons Justin Schembri and Julie Zahra expressed concern over the school hall incident and called on the government to ensure students’ safety is safeguarded.

They also called for the necessary investment to be made so that the performing arts school has its own theatre, which is a basic necessity for a specialised school.