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Budapest (AFP) Oct 16, 2010 Hungary's government said Saturday it wanted to extend a state of emergency in the area hit by a toxic spill two weeks ago, as experts revealed serious defects in the dam that caused the disaster. "The government will suggest to parliament to extend the state of emergency in the counties of Veszprem, Gyor-Moson-Sopron and Vas due to the effects of the red mud spill," national disaster chief Gyorgy Bakondi said after a cabinet meeting in Budapest. He added that a team of EU experts dispatched to help Hungary deal with the catastrophe had declared itself "satisfied" with the relief operation. Its report would be made public as soon as it was available, Bakondi added. On the other hand, five Austrian army experts who examined the breached reservoir that caused the deadly chemical spill on October 4, revealed serious defects in the structure, which was old and had been constantly overloaded, an Austrian defence ministry spokesman said Saturday. While a system of dykes put up this week affords temporary protection against a new spill, the reservoir requires a fundamental overhaul, the spokesman told the Austria Press Agency. Nine people were killed and over 150 injured when the reservoir of an alumina plant in Ajka, 160 kilometres (100 miles) from Budapest, burst on October 4, sending torrents of poisonous sludge into the surrounding area. On Saturday, residents of Kolontar, one of the villages hardest hit, continued to return home, after they had been evacuated on October 9, following fears of a second spill. So far 500 out of the 800 evacuated have returned. Meanwhile, authorities were preparing to spray an artificial fertiliser to minimise the formation of a toxic dust as the remaining mud dries up. On Friday, environmental group Greenpeace said that the fine dust particles posed a serious health risk to humans. "With this harmless fertiliser, we can prevent the dry mud from spreading, and if these first tests produce positive results, we will cover the entire region with the product," said the head of the regional disaster relief services, Tibor Dobson. On Monday, the EU commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis response, Kristalina Georgieva, was expected to visit Kolontar.
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