Up To 12,000 C-Section Births Between 2017 & 2024

Jul 3 2025

Responding to a parliamentary question, Minister for Health Jo Etienne Abela revealed that out of 35,712 childbirths between 2017 and 2024, there were 11,967 delivered by caesarean section.

The Minister, responding to a question by PN MP Chris Said, revealed that last year (2024), there were 1,563 C-Section births.

In 2017, there were 1,408, whereas in 2018 there were 1,482 and in 2019, there were 1,423.

2020 saw 1,460 C-section births, followed by 1,517 in 2021, 1,478 in 2022, and 1,636 in 2023.

#MaltaDaily

National Lottery Unveils New Super 5 Game Format

Jul 3 2025

National Lottery today announced a major overhaul of the nation’s favourite Super5 Jackpot game, introducing significantly enhanced prize tiers and larger jackpots. The updated format launches tomorrow, July 4 th, 2025.

Tomorrow’s jackpot of €500,000 forms part of a series of changes in the game aimed at creating more meaningful jackpots and higher weekly increments. The two most significant changes to the Super5 game is the doubling of both the starting jackpot as well as the weekly jackpot increments. With the new Super5 format, the starting jackpot has now doubled from €250,000 to €500,000, while weekly increments have also doubled from the current €25,000 to €50,000.

“The new Super5 game format is the result of extensive market research undertaken over the past 6 months’ commented Franco De Gabriele – Chief Commercial Officer of National Lottery plc. “The enhancements to Super5 are the product of player feedback. We listened carefully to what players value most – bigger jackpots. while staying true to the simplicity that made Super5 a household favourite for the past 35 years.”

The new Super5 game will have a new ticket price of €3 and a new game matrix of 49 balls. These changes were necessary to allow for the improvements to the game. The price for Super5 Plus shall remain €1, whilst the top prize for this game will increase from €100,000 to €150,000. The pay-outs for both Super5-4-3-2-1 and Super5-4-3-2-1 Plus have been increased with the new game matrix.

A new concept of Match First (Prima) has been introduced to the Super5-4-3-2-1 game replacing the current Match 1 category. “The bigger and faster-growing jackpots have stronger market appeal”, added Mr. De Gabriele.

“We have designed a game format to create more millionaires in the process. The expected average jackpot payouts are projected to exceed €1.5M for the first prize. We’ve also ensured that players have improved accessibility to the game, through our digital portal, lottery.mt.”

Super5 is a national lottery game with tickets sold in 240 national lottery stores in Malta and Gozo. Draws are conducted every Wednesday and Friday evening and are televised live on TVM after the 8pm new bulletin, as well as on the company’s social media channels.

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Malta Rangers Unit Quickly Contain Unattended Fire in Aħrax Woodlands

Jul 3 2025

In the early hours of the morning, the Malta Rangers Unit successfully contained a potentially dangerous fire left unattended in the dense pine woodlands of Aħrax, Mellieħa.

While wrapping up their shift shortly after midnight, the Rangers carried out one final patrol around the Aħrax area. During their sweep, they discovered an active fire burning within the woodland with no one in sight.

Given the dry summer conditions, such negligence posed a serious risk of sparking a large-scale wildfire.

Acting swiftly, the Rangers, equipped with water and fire extinguishers, managed to put out the fire before it could spread. Their rapid response likely prevented serious damage to the local ecosystem and a major threat to nearby areas.

Authorities are once again reminding the public that leaving fires unattended, especially in such conditions, is not only reckless but also illegal. The Mellieħa Local Council has bye-laws in place to prevent such incidents and urges all visitors to respect local legislation for the safety of everyone.

The Malta Rangers Unit continues to patrol the Aħrax woodlands regularly, helping reduce the occurrence of wildfires while protecting the area’s valuable wildlife and natural heritage.

#MaltaDaily

KM Malta Flight To Catania Forced Back Due To Runway Crane

Jul 3 2025

A KM Malta flight heading to Catania’s Fontanarossa Airport was forced to turn back to Malta after a crane was found blocking the runway.

Flight KM640 departed Malta at 6.05 am and was scheduled to land in Catania at 6.45 am. However, by 6.25 am, the aircraft had already begun its return to Malta without landing.

According to Italian news site Ansa.it, airport operator Sac announced that the airport had been closed to all incoming and outgoing flights on Thursday morning.

Operations later resumed once the issue was resolved.

The disruption was reportedly caused by a crane used for overnight maintenance works, which became stuck on the runway and could not be removed in time.

This led to temporary closure of the runway for safety reasons. The incident resulted in delays and cancellations, with affected passengers advised to monitor updates and rebook flights as necessary.

#MaltaDaily