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The construction of new nuclear reactors at Dukovany, one of Czechia's two nuclear power plants, marks the beginning of a new era in Czech-Korean relations, according to Czech President Petr Pavel.  After meeting South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, the Czech head of state stressed that this new level of cooperation exceeds the scope of traditional business relations. Speaking at a business forum, the two leaders emphasized that the project will enhance collaboration in other sectors, including industry, science, and research. This comes as Czech energy company ČEZ negotiates a contract with South Korean KHNP, set to be finalized by March 2025. The first reactor is expected to be completed by 2036.

A dramatic scene unfolded on the Vltava River near Prague’s Štvanice Island on Thursday evening, when a young child managed to set a parked van in motion and drove it into the river. The child's mother jumped into the water after her offspring. A random passer-by who saw the incident jumped in after the woman. All three emerged from the river uninjured. The child, a school-age boy, reportedly got into the van to change his clothes when the incident happened. Firefighters later pulled the van out of the water.

The European Union will make billions of euros available to help central Europe recover from severe floods, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday, following a meeting with the heads of governments of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Poland. Von der Leyen said that 10 billion euros would be made available from EU cohesion funds and that some of the conditions usually attached to such funds, such as co-financing by member states, would be lifted to make the response quicker. She also said that money from the EU's Solidarity Fund, which supports member states hit by natural disasters, would be used to rebuild infrastructure. Two billion euros should fall to the Czech Republic.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala has welcomed the news, saying that repairing the devastated regions from national budgets would be long and difficult. At the meeting Mr. Fiala also praised the cooperation between emergency crews and water management authorities in the region.

Municipalities recovering from the floods have appealed for more volunteers to help with clean-up work, and say they need more dryers, pumps and other equipment used in the clean-up effort. Czech Television broadcast the appeal from 20 mayors in the affected areas. Appeals are also being posted on social media. Charity organizations and NGOs have already collected more than 221 million crowns in aid to the affected regions and are buying shovels, wheelbarrows, gloves, food and other basis necessities to provide both the locals and volunteers in the clean-up effort. The army has also been called on to help. There are fears that the onset of cold weather will make drying out the houses very difficult. On a visit to some of the worst affected areas President Pavel said that the reconstruction effort will take months or even years, urging the government to provide significant assistance to the municipalities in question.