THE FIRE in the High Tatras was mostly extinguished by rain on Sunday, the daily SME wrote. Chief fire officer Adrian Takac told the daily that the last of the fire was extinguished on Monday night after it rained again.
The crisis committee withdrew some of the emergency measures and tourist trails were reopened, apart from around Popradské Pleso, Hrebienok and Cesta Slobody, which lead to the fire’s location. Cable cars are also once again in operation.
The weekend blaze re-opened disputes between environmentalists and the Agriculture Minister, Zsolt Simon. The chairman of the forest-protection NGO, VLK (wolf), Juraj Lukáč, accused the minister of direct responsibility for the recent fire. Lukáč called on the minister to step down.
The minister retorted by saying that he was "surprised that environmentalists can issue these kind of statements without consequences." He accused the environmentalists of preventing forest workers from doing their jobs.
Compiled by Magdalena MacLeod from press reports
TheSlovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the informationpresented in its Flash News postings.
