Minister is with his soldiers.

In the area of Devecser red mud reservoir of residue from aluminium production broke and flooded two nearby villages with toxic red mud on Monday afternoon.

140 soldiers of the HDF have been deployed to the devastated area to evacuate and rescue the locals. 18 emergency vehicles have been sent to the devastated area to help evacuate residents.

The seriously injured people were airlifted to hospital by military helicopters. Currently 8 injured people are treated by doctors of Honvéd Hospital. The reservoir of toxic mud used by a local aluminium plant gave way Monday afternoon and the sludge flooded into the neighbouring villages of Devecser and Kolontár and threatened five others. Three people died, many disappeared and about eighty people injured of whom a dozen seriously.

Last night Minister of Defence Dr Csaba Hende left the plenary session to travel to the site of the devastation to be informed about the rescue work of the HDF’s troops and to take the necessary measures.

Written by Dóra Darnyik