Three carnival floats were completely destroyed in the early hours of yesterday morning after they caught fire in Valletta.

In a statement, the police said they were informed that three floats were ablaze in St Sebastian Street, Valletta at about 5:30am.

Preliminary investigations established that for some reason, one float caught fire and the blaze spread to two others which were parked behind it.

The police called for assistance from the Civil Protection Department who extinguished the blaze.

The police said the machinery inside the floats was also seriously damaged. Duty magistrate Audrey Demicoli was informed of the fires and ordered an on-site inquiry.