Immediately after lunch in the industrial zone of the city of Snina, an emergency occurred: a large fire broke out in the production hall of the company ZVS Holding (ZVS Holding, part of the firearms empire of Czech billionaire Michal Strnad), which is part of the firearms empire of Czech billionaire Michal Strnad. Thick black smoke quickly took over the sky above the city, forcing local authorities to impose emergency restrictions.
At noon, smoke clouds rose over the former area of the Vihorlat factory, visible from different parts of the city. The fire engulfed the roof of one of the production halls where metal bodies for ammunition are made, including delta-shaped and artillery products.
For safety reasons, the city authorities quickly appealed to residents to avoid staying outside.
Official recommendations for residents of nearby areas include:
- limit any outdoor activity due to possible poisoning by toxic smoke products;
- close windows and doors in homes;
- completely turn off air conditioners, heat recovery, and other forced ventilation systems that draw air from outside;
- strictly avoid approaching the firefighting site and follow the instructions of rescuers.
A large-scale rescue operation was immediately launched at the scene. According to the regional fire and rescue service in Prešov, several firefighter teams were deployed to extinguish the fire. All company employees were evacuated in time at the beginning of the incident, and there are currently no casualties.
According to preliminary information from the CSG group (CSG group, owner of the company), the fire broke out on the roof of the building during scheduled repair and reconstruction work carried out by an external contractor. The chief spokesperson of the Czech holding, Andrej Čirtek, confirmed that the production process in the affected hall has been temporarily stopped.
The company assures that the incident will not affect the fulfillment of current obligations to customers thanks to the capacities of other enterprises in the network. More details about the emergency can be found in the original source on the Startitup portal. Currently, rescuers are finishing extinguishing localized fire spots, and a special commission will begin investigating the exact damages and causes of the fire.
