A mechanical defect in the freezer of the fishing trawler Simshar might have caused the explosion that left three of the five-person crew dead and Teo, the 11-year-old boy, still missing.

Yesterday, the fishing village of Marsaxlokk was in mourning following the tragedy that struck the fishing trawler Simshar that, so far, only owner Simon Bugeja has survived. Mr Bugeja, accompanied by his father Karmenu Bugeja, his 11-year-old son Teo, Noel Carabott and an Eritrean, set off on a swordfish-fishing trip on Monday 7 July and were to return four days later on Friday, but did not. Simon Bugeja’s wife Sharon, filed a police report on their absence on Saturday.

The village was silent, with a few tourists walking along the shoreline in the burning heat.

Very few Marsaxlokk residents were about, and those who were had a shocked, almost stunned look on their face.

A group of fishermen sat under a canopy on the shore, staring into space with a pile of nets laying untouched at their feet. The bay, which is usually empty during the day, was full of tiny fishing boats and colourful luzzus, as most of the fishermen had joined the search parties on the larger trawlers.

One fisherman, who was pottering around under a green canopy on his fishing boat, said that since the trawler went missing over a week ago, the whole village felt empty. “We kept wondering what had happened to them,” he said.

Simon Bugeja was found by the Grecale, which belongs to Ray Bugeja, president of the Fisheries Cooperative, and was flown to Mater Dei Hospital on Friday night after he was found alive at about 7.45pm, having spent eight days at sea.

Mr Bugeja told rescuers yesterday that on the day of the accident, he heard a strange noise in the engine room and went down to investigate. A few seconds later there was a large explosion and he found himself treading water.

The men tried to open a life raft but were unsuccessful and instead made a raft out of floats, which are usually attached to fishing nets, and helped 11-year-old Teo on top.

Mr Bugeja said the Eritrean man was the first to die on Saturday followed by Noel Carabott on Sunday and Carmelo Bugeja on Monday.

Mr Bugeja said that on Thursday, a helicopter flew very close to him and his son. He shouted out that they were Maltese and needed help but the helicopter flew away.

In a statement, the police said that the results of the autopsy showed that Carmel Bugeja, the fisherman whose corpse was recovered on Friday afternoon died from drowning. His corpse was the second to be recovered by fishermen on board the fishing vessel San Gorg about five nautical miles from where Mr Carabott’s corpse was found.

Noel Carabott, 33, whose corpse was found late on Thursday, also drowned. His wife Stefania identified her husband’s body from a bracelet and tattoos.

The police said the corpse was in an advanced stage of decomposition and had no identification documents.

Fisheries Cooperative president Ray Bugeja said there were no words to express what he felt when he was told Simon was alive. “I experienced something I will never forget as long as I live – after hearing that two bodies had been found I wasn’t expecting that phone call.”

With tears in his eyes and barely able to speak, Mr Bugeja said that Simon still insisted that his son was alive and that the last time he saw him – on Friday morning – Teo was still alive.

“The possibility of finding Teo is dwindling but I didn’t think that Simon would have been found after seven days so there is still hope,” he said.

However, there was a general feeling of resentment, and at times even anger, towards the AFM.

Ghaqda Kooperativa tas-Sajd secretary Paul Piscopo criticised the AFM for not using patrol boats in the search and only operated from the air. “This is the second time fishing boats – and not the AFM – found a missing trawler. The first time it happened was when the trawler Lorenzo Madre went missing and the fishing boats organised a search party,” he said.

In fact, he added, the AFM requested the fishermen not to go out to sea in search parties but they ignored this request anyway.

“Some people didn’t even go out fishing because we wanted to find them,” he said.

Along with other fishermen, he was very critical of the tactics used by the AFM in the search. “We were told not to participate in the search, but we found the bodies – and not the AFM.”

“If they had used patrol boats then perhaps the bodies might have been found earlier,” he said.

Mr Piscopo said the cooperative even offered to hire a plane to help with the search but the army refused.

Early yesterday morning, Mr Piscopo visited Simon Bugeja, who is still being kept in the Intensive Care Unit at Mater Dei. “Simon told me that Noel (Carabott) and Karmenu stripped to their underwear and covered the boy with their clothes to protect him from the sun.”

It seems that the explosion was caused by a mechanical defect in the freezer, which was located in the middle of the trawler. As a result, explained Mr Piscopo, when the explosion took place, the boat was totally destroyed.

The tragedy shocked the fishing world and left many fishermen wondering about their own safety at sea.

“My confidence is shaken after what has happened – I have been going out to sea for many years but now I am worried about what might happen, especially since it took us eight days to find Simon,” said Mr Piscopo.

In fact, it seems the fishing cooperatives will call a meeting with the Rural Affairs Ministry to discuss fishermen’s safety at sea.

He described Karmenu, who was also a member of the fishing cooperative, as a good man with great inventive skills.

“Karmenu didn’t know how to read or write, and he didn’t know how to swim. He was also very hard-headed and a problem solver – he could take anything apart and put it together in no time,” said Mr Piscopo.

Anthony Carabott, president of the Kooperativa Nazzjonali tas-Sajd, said that when Laura 2 found Noel Carabott’s body, the AFM told them not to inform the other boats.

“The ship’s captain was threatened and told not to say anything about finding the body, but he still informed the others,” he said.

Even though the Simshar was scheduled to return on Friday, Simon Bugeja turned the fishing trawler towards Malta on Thursday – one day earlier – because they had an abundant catch of fish.

“It was Simon’s last trip before the village feast – after that he would have gone out fishing for lampuki,” said Mr Piscopo.

In fact, the cooperatives, together with various other local committees, held a meeting yesterday evening to discuss the possibility of postponing the village feast of Our Lady of Pompeii on 3 August.

“No one is in the mood for celebrating,” said Mr Piscopo.