Damage claims related to damaged munitions site assessed

The region of Zlín reviewed more than 130 damages claims in connection with measures taken by fire fighters, the military and police pyrotechnicians, at a now defunct munitions site in Vrbětice last year. The region is asking that roughly 1.15 million crowns be paid by the Interior Ministry to 38 claimants. Damages pertain largely to losses suffered by local businesses, as the result of intervention by security personnel to stabilise the damaged site. Roughly a year ago, two storage buildings at the munitions site in Vrbětice were destroyed by a massive explosion which scattered additional material and rendered the entire site unstable and highly dangerous for months. Two employees died in the initial blast.