Hungary said it hopes to finish building an emergency dam today to hold back a reservoir of toxic sludge after a breach of the original retaining wall caused a deadly flood of industrial waste.
About 1 million cubic meters of red mud, a byproduct of alumina production, leaked out of an alumina plant reservoir into villages and waterways in western Hungary on Monday last week, killing seven people, injuring 123 and fouling rivers including a local branch of the Danube.
“We hope to have the dam finished by Tuesday,” the prime minister’s spokesman Peter Szijjarto told private broadcaster TV2 yesterday. “We have 4,000 people and 300 machines working at the scene, so we are doing our utmost to prevent another tragedy.”
Photo: EPA
One week into the disaster, one person was still missing.
Tibor Dobson, a spokesman for disaster crews, said evacuated residents of the nearby village of Kolontar had to remain in emergency accommodation.
“They will not be able to return to their homes today, as even though the construction [of the dam] is progressing well, it is roughly 70 percent complete,” Dobson told TV2.
Kolontar was evacuated on Saturday after cracks appeared in the northern wall of the reservoir, threatening a second spill of the toxic red sludge, which swept through neighboring areas a week ago.
Dobson yesterday told reporters the latest checks performed on the damaged northern wall of the sludge reservoir showed no further disturbance.
A team of EU environment experts was due to arrive in Hungary yesterday to provide authorities assistance in dealing with the disaster.
The nearby town of Devecser, home to 5,400 people, remains on alert. The military has sent more than 300 soldiers and 127 transport vehicles into the town and five trains have been put on standby in case it has to be evacuated.
The government held an extraordinary meeting on Sunday to assess the aftermath of the disaster. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was to inform lawmakers of the government’s plans in parliament later yesterday, local media reported.
Citing a lawmaker of the ruling Fidesz party, the daily Nepszabadsag reported on Monday that the idea of nationalizing the alumina factory of MAL Zrt, which owns the damaged reservoir, could also emerge during discussions.
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