Malta's azure window rock formation may be lost forever. This, after the iconic landmark collapsed into the sea on Wednesday.

There was a great sense of loss not only in the country, but around the globe as the highly-popular tourist attraction, which has been regularly featured in travel brochures and Instagram posts, met its untimely demise.   The arched rock formation was even featured in the hit HBO series "Game of Thrones."

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It was a heart-wrenching sight for local resident Roger Chessell who witnessed how the natural arched structure fell and was engulfed by the sea when strong gale winds hit the area.  The incident happened at around 940 AM local time.

"There was a big raging sea beneath the window," Chassel said in an interview, as he described how Malta's azure window rock formation met its unexpected end. "Suddenly, the arch collapsed into the sea with a loud whoomph, throwing up a huge spray. By the time the spray had faded, the stack had gone too," he added.  

The country's top officials have expressed great disappointment over this development that could have a major impact on Malta's tourism industry. However, they themselves acknowledged that the collapse of the natural wonder was inevitable and could not have been prevented.

According to Gozo Minister Anton Refalo, the incident was akin to "losing a part of yourself" but was quick to say that there were still a lot of reasons why people should come and visit Gozo. For his part, Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis viewed the collapse of Malta's azure window rock formation as a great loss for the community in terms of marketing opportunities.

The destruction of the well-loved tourist attraction came at a time when geologists predicted that it would most likely to survive in the coming decades. However, mounting concerns over its long-term future became a major concern over the past year.

In order to ensure its preservation, officials had in fact recently introduced a fine on people who walked over the arch.  But the penalty was weakly enforced, as tourists continued to flock to the area, with some of them filming as they jumped off Malta's azure window rock formation.