Blast victims remembered on tenth anniversary

A remembrance ceremony was held at the Military Maintenance Company (VOP) in Nováky on Thursday in memory of the eight people who were killed in a blast at VOP exactly ten years ago, TASR reported on Thursday. "I profoundly regret the losses, my thoughts go out to the victims' families, and that day will forever remain a black day in the history of the Defence Ministry," said ministry head Peter Gajdoš. Nováky mayor Daniel Daniš recollected in his speech that the explosion occurred while people were going about their daily business, catching them off guard. Slovakia hasn't been through many such disasters in its history, he said, and the disaster that occurred in Nováky has left behind much grief. The accident has been dealt with by the district court in Prievidza since 2012. Eight people were killed, one person suffered multiple serious injuries and another 20 people were lightly injured at VOP after a large amount of ammunition in the company's defusing hall exploded on March 2, 2007. The material damage has been estimated at €2 million.