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Update Ora 19.20: The authorities in Prahova county have decided to evacuate another block of flats in the city of Slănic, where the disturbance that occurred on 23 August Street has intensified. Thus, 16 people have now been “asked” to leave their homes, after a pillar sank vertically into the pit that appeared in the street. The prefect of the county, Emil Dragănescu, declared that the decision must be submitted to the approval of the County Committee for Emergency Situations, reports News.ro.
He indicated that the safety perimeter had been extended to at least 70 meters, noting that there is a pit with a diameter of 5-6 meters and a “consistent” depth, given that an electricity pole had sunk, vertically within seconds. He thanked the locals for being “understanding” in this situation.
Also, the prefect explained that expertise will be done to see how damaged the buildings are and if people will be able to return to their homes at some point.
So far, 42 residents of Slănic city, Prahova county, have been evacuated after a portion of 23 August street collapsed.
Update Ora 18.30: The Prefect of Prahova County, Emil Drăgănescu, captured in a video the moment when an electricity pole collapses into the crater formed in the asphalt:
The prefect of Prahova county, Emil Drăgănescu, announced on Thursday evening that another block in Slănic, located in the area of 23 August street, which collapsed a week ago, will be evacuated, reports Agerpres.
According to him, the crater widens its edges, so the authorities decided to intervene and evacuate another block. The prefect showed that the area has not stabilized naturally, until this moment, which is why the emergency intervention was decided.
“This morning, while I was here for the Red Cross action to support the evacuated people, being on the spot, I noticed together with the representatives of the City Hall and Electrica, who were trying to clear a pillar, the fact that this suffusion widens its edges, this thing making us take the decision to intervene quickly and evacuate another block. We will ask the members of the CJSU for a new meeting to validate this quick intervention, as the area must be stabilized. Practically, we noticed that naturally this area has not yet stabilized and, considering that the period is quite quiet for those who work, (…) we made the decision to urgently intervene on this suffusion. At the moment, the specialists who have been with us every time, plus some new ones, are on site. We will do (…) an analysis with the builders who wanted to come to our support and give us some advice in this regard, with the representatives of the Geological Institute of Romania, of the Bucharest Technical University of Construction”, said Emil Drăgănescu.
Update Ora 15.26: The Head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, ordered new evacuations in Slănic Prahova:
“Following the current situation found in the town of Slănic, in conjunction with the latest decisions adopted following the extraordinary meeting of the County Committee for Emergency Situations, the head of the Department for Emergency Situations ordered the expansion of the safety perimeter by evacuating the communities in the vicinity of the affected area. In this sense, through the care of the Prefect’s Institution and the Inspectorate for Emergency Situations Prahova, the evacuation action of the population, in order to eliminate any danger regarding their safety, will be carried out as soon as possible. At the same time, at the disposal of the Secretary of State, the head of the DSU, Dr. Raed Arafat, a new team from the IGSU will travel to the town of Slănic, which together with construction and mining specialists will carry out a new reconnaissance and analysis of the situation on the spot .”
Update Ora 15.23: A RO-Alert message was issued, in which people are asked to leave the area of 23 August Street in Slănic, reports ziarulincomod.ro.
The original news: The prefect of Prahova county, Emil Drăgănescu, conveyed to the citizens of Slănic the fact that, based on the latest data received and preliminary information, additional evacuation measures are required in the area adjacent to the crater, according to a press release from the prefecture.
The Prefect of Prahova County asks the citizens to collaborate with the state institutions and to trust the authorities.
We remind you that a portion of 23 August street collapsed, and the 42 residents who were evacuated will not be able to return to their apartments, as the blocks were damaged.
“Unfortunately, people will not return home. The preliminary reports ask the local public authorities to carry out extensive studies, to carry out intervention works and only after that for people to return home. At the moment we are facing some subsidence phenomena that also affect the blocks, we do not know how far they will advance, we do not know if they were before this surprise or if they appeared during it, but it is certain that the evacuated blocks cannot be repopulated at the time of face”, Drăgănescu declared on Tuesday.
He presented the conclusions of the specialists who show that these phenomena “were not produced by earthquakes, nor by large natural phenomena that took place in depth, nor are they directly related to the salt vein that is very close to the area in question”.
“It’s about water flowing there in different forms and, more than that, about anthropic actions, that is, unfortunately, human intervention,” Drăgănescu said, citing the conclusions of the reports.
