The horrific news of a fire which destroyed Remedies Pharmacy in Sliema last July came as a shock, not only to the people that worked there, but also to the close-knit community. Thankfully, no one was hurt, and despite the tragedy that shook the team to its core, they’re now back and stronger than ever before – operating from new premises further down the road on Manuel Dimech Street.

The team is made up of managing pharmacist Ingrid Mercieca, pharmacist Chris Tanti, and sales girls Ingrid Webb and Sinead Gauci – a close group that have worked together for four years. On that fateful day in July, the two Ingrids were at work, and with visible emotion, take me through what happened.

“That morning started out like any other morning. I remember we were very busy, but we were in a good mood and just getting on with things,” Ingrid Mercieca explains. “When Ingrid mentioned that she smelled burning, at first, I couldn’t smell anything.”

With goosebumps running up her arms, Ingrid Webb recalls, “we were in the adjoining clinic at the time, and went into the other room to check it out. Ingrid realised the smell was coming from the main switch within the circuit breaker, so she asked me to get a broom handle with which to switch it off.” But of course, it was not to be.

“It suddenly burst into flames, and while Ingrid went to call for help, I tried to put the fire out with a fire extinguisher. The cupboard kept closing, and the fire was increasing. It quickly spread to the perfume section and I realised it was out of our control,” Ms Mercieca says, “so I stopped trying to put it out and we began to evacuate the patients.”

Once everyone was safely outside, Ms Webb made for the door – her bag was inside, and in it, all her belongings. “Thick smoke was billowing out, and the flames were like waves going up to the ceiling. I dragged her away, and as soon as we turned the corner, we heard an explosion coming from inside,” Ms Mercieca recalls.

“It was too late. The explosions were like fireworks,” says Ms Webb. “I lost everything that was with me. My phone, my purse, three pairs of glasses… the only things that survived were photos of my niece, Nina, and my daughters, Nevise and Tamara. Everything in my bag was burned except these photos,” she says, explaining that they were in a section of her purse that melted from the heat of the fire and sealed itself off, protecting them. “It’s unbelievable,” she says. “These photos will die with me.”

The fire was caused by an electrical fault, and in a little over 10 minutes, flames had engulfed the entire building. Visibly in shock, the pharmacist and sales girl didn’t know how their colleagues found out about it, but Sinead Gauci and Chris Tanti arrived even before the fire engines did.

“My aunt phoned me to ask which of the pharmacies was burning,” Sinead says, recounting her experience. “I was at home and had my daughter with me, so I called my mother to take her so I could go and see what happened. I only live a few minutes away, so as soon as I turned the corner I saw a huge flame. That’s when I realised it was our pharmacy. I couldn’t feel my feet. As soon as I saw my colleagues I lost it,” she laments. “We are like a family here, so it was very traumatic.” At this Ms Webb smiles, “she’s like a daughter to me.”

Chris was also at home when it happened. “My phone started ringing while I was in the shower, and I found two missed calls from clients, as well as a missed call from one of my colleagues, Gertrude, who worked with us at the time. I called her back and she said, ‘Chris, Chris, Chris, qed taqbad l-ispizerija!’ (the pharmacy is burning!) I told her that these aren’t things to joke about, and she said ‘Chris, vera!’ (it’s true) and hung up. Seconds later, I got a call from Ingrid, the managing pharmacist, and she was crying. I grabbed the first items of clothing I could find, got on my bike and rushed over,” he says.

The pharmacy originally belonged to Ingrid Mercieca’s family. Having sold it to the current company four years ago, she has memories of it going back to her childhood. “It felt like my dad had died all over again,” she laments.

The fire happened the day after the second year anniversary of her dad’s death. “I’m sure that my dad was with us that day. The side door of the clinic is self-closing, and it always worked very well. On the day of the fire, I opened the door and couldn’t find anything to keep it open, but it remained open on its own. It remained open all day, and that evening, after the fireman came and we had secured the building, I had to physically close it myself. But till today, if you open it, it closes as it’s supposed to – it wasn’t damaged by the fire.”

The past four months have been tough for the team, who needed to be split up to work in different pharmacies. “We want to thank Mr Alfred Mangion, the owner, for all his support throughout. He even bought us a coffee machine for our new place, and checks in on us often,” Ms Webb says. “The other pharmacies also really welcomed us,” adds Sinead, “and we’d really like to thank them for that. We had a lot of help in setting up the new place too.”

Before opening a couple of weeks ago, the team spent three weeks working tirelessly to set it up – an experience which continued to bring them closer together, and now that they’re open and serving the community once again, they couldn’t be happier. “Our clients here are also part of our little family. It’s a small community, and the response from them has been overwhelming. Some of them even brought us plants and chocolates, champagne, croissants and coffee while we were setting up,” they say.

“We feel like champions now,” says Ms Webb. “Tamara brought me a trophy and we keep it here to remind us of what we went through. We’re back home, and it feels great. The family is stronger than ever.”

Meanwhile, works on the original pharmacy are set to start soon, and while they can’t reveal too much, it’s looking like it will be open within the next two years. Ms Mercieca reveals, “the place is not safe, so most of it will have to be demolished and rebuilt.”

And in spite of the tears and trauma, this team really is a force to be reckoned with. “It’s been a big learning curve, and we took a lot of positives out of it,” says Chris. “We have new ideas, and a better approach towards each other and our clients.”

Ms Mercieca agrees. “Before this happened, we were stressed and overworked. We would grumble and get on each other’s nerves, but this experience really made us see how good things were. It is literally life changing, and makes you appreciate what you have. It showed us how much we love and respect each other, and how we would do anything for each other. Having worked in different locations and with different teams, it really showed us how strong our bond is,” she concludes.

What a wonderful take on a very real tragedy. The team at GuideMeMalta would like to wish Ingrid, Ingrid, Chris and Sinead all the very best in their new Sliema spot – and may their strength and positivity spread far and wide!