(source: SME.sk / Hej,ty)
Good evening. Here is the Thursday, July 28 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Domaša dam lake half full
Low water level in Domaša dam lake. (source: TASR)
Municipalities near the Domaša dam in eastern Slovakia have launched an information campaign for locals on how to save water as levels at the dam lake fall to just half of full volume.
However, according to water management company Slovenský Vodohospodársky Podnik (SVP), this is not an extraordinary situation.
Meanwhile, in the south of the country, heat is taking its toll on animals - more than 500 fish were found dead in a lake in the Komárno district because of a lack of oxygen after recent heatwaves heated up its waters.
Read more about the climate situation in Slovakia: More than half of the country faces extreme drought, and due to a lack of drinking water emergency situations have been declared in 11 municipalities. High temperatures are even posing a risk to nuclear power plants, airport runways, and railway tracks. Meanwhile, one village keeps breaking temperature records.
More stories on Spectator.sk
DROUGHT: A section of the Rajčianka River has dried up, Kofola to curb use of water.
CLIMATE CHANGE: Remember these days the next time you go vote. Don't forget after the temperature drops (opinion).
SLOVALCO: The aluminium manufacturer in Žiar nad Hronom has been warning about its problems and potential job losses since summer last year. Now that it has happened, the government is taking notice.
VENUS OF MORAVANY: Exhibition shows the birth of art in Slovakia.
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Feature story for today
Three years ago, voters – liberals and conservatives alike – elected an empathetic, authentic and conflict-avoiding divorced mother of two as Slovakia's first woman president.
However, Zuzana Čaputová’s popularity has been on the wane for more than a year now. Only 15 percent of the electorate would “definitely” vote for her in the next presidential election - due in April 2024 - a poll in late May found. Trust in her has fallen steadily from 64 percent in January 2021 to 42 percent in June.
Yet despite being consistent in terms of her promises and views during her term of office, including on the war in Ukraine, both coalition and opposition parties have managed to paint her as being politically partisan.
Finance Minister Igor Matovič has been attacking her since the pandemic started, while the opposition has claimed she is a US agent.
Picture of the day
The Piecky gorge in the Slovak Paradise National Park, eastern Slovakia, is currently without a visible stream of water due to drought. The small amount of water in its upper parts is easily lost under rocks in the lower part of the gorge.
(source: TASR)
In other news
Executive Director of Poprad-Tatry Airport Peter Dujava has resigned from his post. Airport workers had announced that they would quit their jobs in two months unless Dujava stepped down. Read more here.
OĽaNO MP and Chairman of the Parliamentary Defence and Security Committee Juraj Krupa is leaving the party's parliamentary club. Writing on social media, he said: "In the last few weeks in Slovak politics there have been things with which I cannot identify with as a citizen and politician adhering to democratic and liberal values." According to the MP, the party has become ultraconservative and betrayed its values and principles. OĽaNO lost several MPs since the last elections, last time after a failed vote on former prime minister Robert Fico's arrest.
Many rivers in western Slovakia have reached historic minimal daily flow averages, reports the Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute. Rainfall on Tuesday did not improve the situation.
Slovakia will send 30 soldiers and a helicopter with a firefighting module to help fight a massive fire in the Bohemian Switzerland national park in the Czech Republic. Slovak firefighters and one helicopter are already lending a hand in the effort.
The worst situation with abortion availability in Slovakia is in the Prešov and Žilina Regions, according to a survey by non-governmental organization Možnosť voľby (Freedom of Choice) which also showed that approximately one third of the 70 mapped facilities in Slovakia refuse to provide abortion. According to an older survey by the NGO carried out last autumn, only a small number of people support more restricted access to abortions.
Two men robbed a bank in the Ružinov district, Bratislava. Shortly before 10.00 AM on Thursday. Police are asking residents for any relevant information and have warned that the robbers may be armed.
Firefighters have been able to localize a forest fire near the village of Malá Lodina, Košice Region which has caused major damages. The fire broke out on July 20 and firefighters are monitoring individual sections and extinguishing small fires. More than half of Slovakia is currently experiencing extreme drought.
From July 30, repairs and replacements of bridge joints will partially close the D1 highway where bridges cross the Váh River. Drivers should be prepared for restrictions.
The Slovak National Museum (SNM) in cooperation with the Museum of the Ukraine History has launched a photo exhibition called Look! Mariupol! Pictures by Ukrainian journalist Viacheslav Tverdochlib show the humanitarian disaster and situation during the Russian bombing of the strategic port in the Sea of Azov.
If you have suggestions on how this news overview can be improved, you can reach us at editorial@spectator.sk.
