Thaindian News

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY (BNO NEWS) — The number of people who died in the Hungarian toxic spill has risen to eight as the director of the responsible company was arrested, officials said.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Monday announced the arrest of Zoltan Bakonyi, the director of the company responsible for the disaster. In consequence, the government has taken control of the Mal Rt aluminium company and has frozen its assets.

“We need to hold the company responsible for the red sludge spill under state control and its assets under state closure until all of these four tasks are handled,” Orban said.

On Friday, the death toll rise from 4 to 7. Two bodies were found near the city of Devecser, the second village to be hit by the sludge. Also, an 81-year-old man died in a hospital in Vezprem, in western Hungary. He was among dozens of victims of the toxic sludge who remain hospitalized due to severe chemical burns.

Hungary’s worst ever environmental disaster reached the Danube River on Thursday, threatening to pollute major waterways and immediately affecting neighboring countries Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, and Moldova.

The toxic red sludge has covered 50 square kilometers affecting the villages of Kolontár (which was the most affected), Devecser and Somlóvásárhely. Hundreds of people are unable to return to their residences as they are currently poisoned. In addition, the toxic spill has poisoned local waterways and has killed aquatic life in the Marcal River.

On Thursday night, Hungarian authorities appealed to the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism to request three to five experts who have strong field experience in handling toxic sludge, decontamination and mitigation of environmental damage. The EU said it had immediately communicated the request to the 31 countries participating in the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and expected responses soon.

The government of Slovakia reportedly ordered experts to check the river three times a day while Serbia monitors the river near the Hungarian border. According to officials, water alkalinity was slightly above normal, with a pH value between 8.96 and 9.07, against a normal figure of 8.0, after the toxic mud reached Europe’s second longest river.

The Hungarian government on Wednesday ordered the aluminum company responsible for the toxic red sludge to shut down as an ecological disaster is feared. The company is located in western Hungary, in the city of Ajka.

After a container barrier burst, around 600,000 cubic meters of the red chemical sludge swept villages and towns between Ajka and Devecser, flooding homes, taking cars off the road and causing around 150 people to be hospitalized due to burns from the liquid. In addition, eight people have been killed.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on Wednesday expressed concern over the spill, fearing its long-term effects and environmental impact.

“This is an unprecedented incident that affects deeply the ecosystem, wetlands and surface water bodies of the region as well as pointing out the fragility of our drinking water reserves,” said Gabor Figeczky, the Deputy CO of WWF-Hungary.