Storm Helios is officially a record breaker

Feb 11 2023

Malta experienced its wettest February day in recorded history on Thursday as Storm Helios hit the nation.

The Met Office reported 140.4mm of rainfall was recorded at the Luqa station, breaking the previous record of 123.7mm set on February 19, 1938.

The widespread rainfall caused damage across Malta, including to historic locations such as the Cittadella ditch in Gozo, the Bighi peninsula wall, and a 17th-century watchtower in Għajn Tuffieħa.

The average rainfall for the month of February is 65.9mm, meaning Malta had more than double the average monthly precipitation in just one day.

As of noon on Friday, the total rainfall for the month of February had reached 159.8mm. The impact of Storm Helios serves as a reminder of the power of nature and the importance of being prepared for severe weather conditions.

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A new team of 32 Maltese firefighters will be heading to Turkey

Feb 11 2023

A new team of 32 Maltese firefighters and 8 volunteers will be heading to Turkey to aid in the earthquake relief efforts, replacing the current team that has been working tirelessly to rescue victims and retrieve bodies from the rubble.

The shift change was announced by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri on social media.

The Civil Protection Department (CPD) organised its rescue team one day after the catastrophic earthquakes struck Turkey and northern Syria, killing tens of thousands.

The Maltese rescuers are facing not only the humanitarian tragedy but also challenging weather conditions, with temperatures dropping below zero at night.

Minister Camilleri also announced that the CPD will continue to collect donations of food and clothing for the disaster-stricken areas in Turkey and Syria.

The Turkish Embassy in Malta has now limited its acceptances of donations to winter tents, gas heaters, blankets, and generators.

The CPD stated that they will divide these items between Turkey and Syria and redirect all other donations to Syria.

Telecom company Epic has also stepped in to support the disaster relief efforts by offering free international calls from Malta to Turkey or Syria and free roaming in Turkey for the entire month of February.

This initiative aims to ensure that those with loved ones in the affected countries can stay in touch.

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Malta Public Transport carried 4.5 million bus passengers in January 2023 

Feb 11 2023

Positive trend surpassing pre-pandemic levels continues

Malta Public Transport carried 4.5 million passengers in the first month of 2023, which is an increase of 59% when compared to January 2022, and an increase of 17% when compared to January 2019. This is the second consecutive month where the number of passengers surpassed pre-pandemic numbers. 

“These positive results are clear evidence that more and more passengers are choosing to travel by bus,” said Konrad Pulé, General Manager of Malta Public Transport. “We need to focus on making journeys by public transport quicker so that we can continue to meet the increasing demand for public transport. We would like to thank all our passengers, who are contributing to a cleaner environment, and we look forward to working with more stakeholders to continue to improve their experience on board the bus.” 

The free public transport initiative launched in October 2022 has also had a substantial impact, with 140,000 individual Tallinja Card holders travelling by bus during January 2023, compared to 91,000 in January 2022 and 120,000 in January 2019. That represents a 15% increase in individuals that used the bus at least once compared to pre-pandemic levels. 

This positive trend was also reflected on the Tallinja Direct services, which are not included in the free public transport initiative. The number of passengers travelling on Tallinja Direct routes more than doubled when compared to 2019, which means that people recognise the benefit of arriving quicker with these faster routes.  

“We need to continue working hard to improve our bus service further in order to attract more people to use the bus. People are telling us that public transport needs to be more efficient, more reliable and with shorter journey times,” explained Mr Pulé. “We will continue discussing various improvements to the route network with different stakeholders to make public transport more attractive.” 

Malta Public Transport extends its gratitude to all its employees, as this success would have not been possible without their dedication and commitment.

The company will continue to invest in its people, to encourage everyone in the company to provide the best public transport service possible. 

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Better weather conditions expected for Saturday and Sunday

Feb 11 2023

The Meteorological Office at the Malta International Airport is predicting better weather conditions for the next two days.

This comes as good news for most people after the devastating results that Storm Helios left during the past few days.

The Met Office is predicting partly cloudy conditions for Saturday and Sunday.

Wind is still expected to feature for the rest of the weekend, but it definitely won’t be raining as much as it did during the storm, and the wind will be much less.

Expected highs of 14°C and lows of 7°C with a ridge of high pressure that will extend from France towards the central Mediterranean.

The will start rather strong but becoming light to moderate Northeast whilst the sea will be rough but becoming moderately rough as the day goes by.

#MaltaDaily