Gov't appoints safety tzar for August 20 holiday (fireworks)
Budapest, August 10 (MTI) - The government has appointed a senior official at the prime minister's office (PMO) to take responsibility on its behalf for contingency planning for Hungary's national holiday celebrations on August 20, said a government spokesman on Friday.
During last year's celebrations, hundreds out of the millions of spectators lining the banks of the River Danube in Budapest to see the fireworks display were seriously injured and four people died when a severe storm rolled in, causing mayhem.
The local municipality, private organisers and the government were criticised for failing to put in place any emergency planning for the event. Hungary's ombudsman for citizen rights found the Prime Minister's Office bore the main responsibility for the disaster.
Zoltan J Gal, state secretary at the PMO, will take responsibility for preparing security and safety measures for the holiday, which celebrates the anniversary of King St. Stephen, the founder of the Hungarian state. A government committee will aid him leading up to the event as well as overseeing the actual proceedings during the day of August 20, said government spokesman David Daroczi.
source: MTI
photo: flickr
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