Government to Compensate Bereaved of Roof Collapse Victims

Velke Zaluzie, 25 March (TASR) - The government will pay compensation of €30,000 to the bereaved families of the people who were killed when part of the roof of the client centre building in Komarno (Nitra region) collapsed on 25 February, while a man who was injured will receive compensation amounting to €3,000, according to a document approved by the government at its away-from-home session held in Velke Zaluzie (Nitra region) on Wednesday. "Three people were identified as injured as a result of the accident, two of them seriously. As a consequence of these injuries, one person died at the scene, while a second one was transported to the hospital in Nove Zamky with severe injuries and in critical condition. He succumbed to his injuries on the night of 3–4 March. The third person sustained minor head injuries," reads the document submitted for the session by the Interior Ministry. The money for the compensation will be paid from the ministry's budget. The roof of the client centre building in Komarno collapsed on 25 February. A 51-year-old man was killed at the scene. A 64-year-old man with a spinal injury was airlifted to the University Hospital in Nove Zamky, while a 67-year-old man with a minor head injury was taken by ambulance to the Agel Hospital in Komarno. All three were clients of the centre. A spokesperson for the Nove Zamky hospital later announced that the 64-year-old man had died. An investigator of the Police Corps has launched criminal proceedings concerning the suspicion of the offence of public endangerment. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) didn't rule out the possibility that the earthquake that took place in south-western Slovakia in February may have contributed to the collapse of part of the building's roof. ko/df