(source: SME)
Police officers and firefighters were called to carry out a thorough search of a RegioJet train in Poprad in Prešov region on March 31 afternoon after an unknown person announced that a bomb was planted in one of the carriages, the TASR newswire learnt on the same day.
“Nine members of the Fire Corps and four pieces of equipment were dispatched to the scene,” reported the firefighter operation centre, as quoted by TASR.
A passenger who introduced herself as Xenia Gavuková told the TASR that all passengers were asked to leave the express train which was going from Prague to Kosice.
“We were already 40 minutes late arriving in Poprad due to various closures en route, and when we reached Poprad the train was halted and we were told to get off immediately due to an emergency situation," said Gavuková, adding that all train traffic in Poprad was paralysed.
The bomb threat turned out to be a hoax, Prešov Fire and Rescue Corps operation centre told TASR later that day.
The stoppage and subsequent lengthy search of the train in Poprad was meaningless and unjustified, as there was no security risk, RegioJet spokesman Aleš Ondrůj stated in a press release.
“The Slovak police knew this, but, nonetheless, they decided to halt traffic at the Poprad railway station,” reads Ondrůj’s statement.
