MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Tuesday, 14 October 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Monday, 13 October): JABLONOV NAD TURNOU - Two passenger trains have collided in the area of the village of Jablonov nad Turnou in the district of Roznava (Kosice region), with more than 20 people injured according to initial reports, spokesperson for the regional Kosice Firefighter and Emergency Corps Directorate Jozef Balint told TASR on Monday, adding that firefighters from several fire stations are responding at the scene. The Emergency Medical Services Operations Centre announced on social media that five ambulances and a rescue helicopter were heading to the site. According to the police, the two express trains, which were travelling in opposite directions, were carrying a large number of passengers. "All units of the integrated rescue system are at the scene. Passengers are gradually leaving the train carriages, and the extent of the injuries is not yet known. The police are sealing off the site, coordinating the work of rescue teams and directing the movement of people in the area," the Kosice Region Police Directorate has reported on social media. The collision occurred shortly after 10 a.m. at a point where tracks intersect and merge into a single track. KOSICE/BRATISLAVA – Among the patients treated at Louis Pasteur University Hospital (UNLP) in Kosice following the collision of two express trains near the village of Jablonov nad Turnou (Kosice region) on Monday were a woman from Vietnam and a pregnant woman, head doctor Rastislav Burda announced at a press conference held at UNLP. In total, the hospital's trauma surgery clinic treated 33 patients. Of these, four were in a critical condition and in immediate danger of death, while nine had sustained serious injuries and the remainder suffered minor injuries, said Burda. "The positive news is that all patients survived, and we're doing everything we can to stabilise them," said Burda regarding the seriously injured patients. BRATISLAVA - Opposition party Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) is seeking to convene a special emergency parliamentary session over the car accident involving director of the Slovak Information Service (SIS) Pavol Gaspar, TASR learnt on Monday. The party has started collecting signatures from MPs to initiate the session. At a press conference, SaS chairman Branislav Groehling stated that there is a camera recording of the incident in which the police have allegedly shown no interest. "We're initiating an emergency special session with a single agenda item – a resolution calling on the government and Parliament to dismiss Pavol Gaspar from his post as SIS director. We'll collect signatures from our partners," said Groehling. MP Martina Bajo Holeckova (SaS) claimed that the police haven't questioned director of the Nitra Police Directorate Branislav Hajnovic as a witness, even though he appeared at the scene in civilian clothing. According to her, other witnesses haven't been questioned, either, and the police haven't requested available camera footage. "This footage might show who was at fault and how fast Gaspar was driving," she noted. BRATISLAVA - Peter Kazimir remains the nominee of the coalition Voice–SD party for the position of Slovak Central Bank (NBS) Governor, confirmed Education Minister and Voice-SD vice-chair Tomas Drucker during a session of the House Committee for Education, Science, Youth, Sports and Tourism on Monday. „We've had a clear candidate from the beginning, one agreed upon during the coalition talks with the leader of Smer and also with the Slovak National Party (SNS), and that candidate is Peter Kazimir,” said Drucker. Kazimir’s reappointment has come under scrutiny after Prime Minister and Smer-SD chairman Robert Fico rejected his candidacy during the Smer-SD party congress on Saturday (11 October). SLIAC/BRATISLAVA – The Sliac military airport is currently undergoing the largest reconstruction in its history, with the renovation — aimed to transform the airport into a base for Slovakia's F-16 fighter jets — expected to be completed in 2027, President Peter Pellegrini announced during a press briefing at the military base in Sliac on Monday. The works are being carried out in a way that will allow the return of civilian air traffic in the future, said the head of state. „This is not just about repairing existing areas and improving their condition, but also about building a large number of taxiways and new aircraft stands, all to 21st-century standards,” the President explained. He added that hangars are also being reconstructed, both for parking F-16 fighters and for those on standby for rapid response. BRATISLAVA - Accommodation facilities in Slovakia welcomed 808,000 guests for overnight stays in August this year, marking a year-on-year increase of nearly 9 percent and setting an all-time monthly record for tourism, the Statistics Office reported on Monday. August has traditionally been the peak of the tourism season, but this was the first time that hotels, guesthouses, and campsites jointly exceeded 800,000 guests in a single month. According to the Statistics Office, current figures surpassed the pre-pandemic summer levels by around 16,000 guests. Visitors spent over 2.2 million nights in hotels, guesthouses, and other accommodation facilities, representing a 6.6 percent increase compared to last year. The average length of stay in August was 2.8 nights. ko