"Victim of the roof", this is who the Albanian is, the father of 6 children who lost his life in Malta

Bari Balla, is the 51-year-old Albanian, who lost his life at the workplace in Malta. The Albanian died after a roof of a house where he was working collapsed. 

Balla, who was from Librazhdi, had been living and working in Malta for two years. He celebrated his birthday last December and was a father of six children, the youngest of whom is only 12 years old.

The Albanian community in Malta has set up a fundraiser to support the 51-year-old's family as they face the tragedy.

"Bari Balla, father of 6 children, tragically lost his life on Saturday, April 20, 2024, while working in construction," says the fundraiser.

Balla was killed and another worker, a 31-year-old also from Albania, was injured when the roof collapsed at the Sliema property on Saturday morning. The 31-year-old managed to get out and suffered minor injuries, but Balla was trapped under the rubble. He was found dead about an hour later, after a frantic rescue operation.

From preliminary investigations it is known that part of the roof of the first floor of the building has fallen, while the workers were under it. The building is a town house of the 1920s, three stories that will be expanded to turn into a space of shared residence.

The developer and architect received planning permission on March 26 to add a reduced floor and extend the existing ones.

 However, that permit stated that no work could begin on the site until the period in which objectors could appeal the March 26 decision had expired. Objectors usually have 30 days to lodge an appeal against a planning decision.

The Building and Construction Authority, which regulates construction work, said the work on the site was illegal as it had not been informed about it.

"The works did not have full PA clearance and no BCA application was lodged, meaning the works were not permitted," it said in a statement.

The Health and Safety at Work Authority also said it had not been notified of the works. The accident was the latest in a string of construction-related tragedies to hit Malta and the first involving casualties since a public inquiry into the death of Jean-Paul Sophia was published earlier this year.