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Czechs are not particularly worried about large-scale power outages, and last year's blackout affecting parts of the country did not change their level of preparedness for similar events. Around 40% of people actively seek information on how to respond in the event of a blackout.

For example, more than one-third of households still do not have enough drinking water to last even 24 hours, while only about one in eight households has a backup power source. These findings come from a June survey conducted by the Ipsos agency for the energy company epet.

The survey also found that Czech households experienced fewer problems with power outages over the past year. The several-hour nationwide power outage on 4 July last year affected around one million electricity customers.

A Czechoslovak film will be presented in the Venezia Classici section of the Venice Film Festival this year – Valerie and Her Week of Wonders by director Jaromil Jireš, the festival announced today. The section will showcase a total of 19 restored films from around the world.

The restored version of the 1970 film, starring Jaroslava Schallerová in the lead role, will be brought to Venice by the National Film Archive. The horror film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Vítězslav Nezval

Sales of new passenger cars in the Czech Republic increased by 5.85% year on year to 129,810 vehicles in the first half of this year. In June alone, the market recorded a nearly 19% rise in sales to 26,398 vehicles, the highest monthly figure since 2018. The strongest demand was for the Škoda brand, while interest in vehicles with alternative powertrains continues to grow, the Czech Car Importers Association said in a press release today.

Volkswagen ranked second with 9,919 vehicles sold, followed by Hyundai with 8,292. Toyota and Dacia took the next positions. The best-selling models were the Škoda Octavia (9,716), Škoda Kodiaq (7,808), and Škoda Kamiq (6,412), followed by other Škoda models such as the Karoq, Scala, and Fabia.

Each person in the Czech Republic received an average of nearly two defined daily doses of medication last year. The daily average stood at almost 1,992 doses per 1,000 inhabitants, which is 143 more than in 2021. In total, 267 million packs of medicines worth nearly CZK 105 billion at manufacturer prices were delivered to pharmacies and healthcare facilities in Czechia last year, according to the annual report of the State Institute for Drug Control (SÚKL).

More than 66,000 medicines were registered, with around 650 new ones added. In practice, 9,702 of them were actually marketed, and more than 6,600 were covered by public health insurance. Over the past two years, the number of registered medicines increased by around 3,000, while the number of marketed and reimbursed medicines slightly declined.