Fresh deluge of toxic sludge feared

That would flood parts of the town hit by the industrial waste last Monday but stop short of the next town to the north.

Environmental State Secretary Zoltan Illes said recently-discovered cracks on the northern wall of the reservoir at the alumina plant had temporarily stopped widening because of favourable weather conditions but would continue to expand, especially at night.

Yesterday disaster agency spokesman Tibor Dobson said engineers did not detect any new cracks over Saturday night, and the older cracks were being repaired but that it was too soon to consider lowering the current state of alert.

Protective walls were being built around the reservoir's damaged area to hold back any further spills.

"I would describe the situation as hopeful, but nothing has really changed," Mr Dobson said.

"The wall to protect Kolontar is planned to be finished by tonight, but it will likely be several days before residents may be able to move back."

Nearly all of Kolontar's 800 residents were evacuated on Saturday, when Prime Minister Viktor Orban said the north wall of the massive storage pool was expected to "very likely" collapse after cracks were detected at several points along the dam.

The roughly 6,000 residents of neighbouring Devecser, just north of Kolontar, were told by police to pack a single bag and get ready to leave at a moment's notice.

"This hasn't changed," Mr Dobson said. "We are still on guard in case of any more spills."

Red sludge is a by-product of the refining of bauxite into alumina, the basic material for manufacturing aluminium. Treated sludge is often stored in ponds where the water eventually evaporates, leaving behind a largely safe red clay. Industry experts say the sludge in Hungary appeared to have been insufficiently treated, if at all, meaning it remained highly caustic.

On Monday, the sludge flooded three villages in less than an hour, burning people and animals. At least seven people were killed and at least 120 were injured. Several of those taken to hospital were in serious condition. Around 184 million gallons of the caustic red sludge was released.

The red sludge devastated creeks and rivers near the spill site and entered the Danube River on Thursday, moving downstream toward Croatia, Serbia and Romania. But the volume of water in the Danube appeared to be blunting the sludge's immediate impact.

In Romania, local authorities were testing the water every four hours in the village of Bazias where the Danube enters Romania from Serbia. Testing will continue all this week, said Adrian Draghici, director of water for Mehedinti county.

Romanian fishermen sailed out into the Danube yesterday and villagers fished on the banks of the river for pike, which is plentiful in the Danube. They seemed unconcerned by any potential hazards.

However, local officials warned residents about letting animals drink from the Danube and urged them to be careful about fishing, as a precautionary measure.