Hungarian police and soldiers evacuated 800 villagers yesterday as authorities feared a second flood of toxic sludge from a chemicals plant was likely after new cracks appeared in a dyke.
They were evacuated at dawn from Kolontar, a village close to the reservoir that burst in western Hungary last Monday, killing seven people, injuring scores more and poisoning rivers in the country’s worst ecological disaster.
The despairing and angry villagers were taken by bus to Akja, the nearest major town which is 160 kilometres from the capital Budapest. Many placed the blame on MAL Hungarian Aluminium Production and Trade Company, which runs the plant whose sludge had swept through their homes.
“I feel really angry at the company because I feel they’re irresponsible,” said Jozsef Lengyel, who was released from hospital last Thursday after being treated for burns on his lower body.
“I feel they think I’m stupid when they say this sludge isn’t dangerous, because I’ve been burned up to my waist,” the evacuated villager told AFP.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Akja and admitted that another flood of toxic sludge seemed inevitable.
“The reservoir is so damaged that it is likely that it will give way for a second time,” Orban said.
“If the dyke of the reservoir gives way, about 500,000 cubic metres will be released. Several cracks are visible from the north side of the reservoir,” he said.
The first flood on October 4 released 1.1 million cubic metres of foul-smelling, blood-red toxic sludge into villages and rivers.
Security forces also warned thousands of villagers in nearby Devecser to be ready to move if necessary, officials said.
“The evacuation of Kolontar began at six in the morning after we noticed that the dam started weakening at tank number 10,” Disaster Relief Team chief Tibor Dobson told AFP.
One of the new cracks was seven centimetres wide, officials said.
The entire area was under surveillance, with helicopters with heat-detecting cameras in the air and 650 policemen on the ground co-ordinating rescue operations, the national police’s website said.