Press Review

Starting with Lidove noviny, the paper reports on one of the possible reasons why water leaked into such a large part of Prague's metro. Apparently, at the Mustek interchange station the floor in a corridor collapsed under the continuous pressure of tons of water and floodwater leaked from one metro line into another through the gaping hole, the paper says.

On the other hand, Pravo writes that the metro was flooded because it was not properly sealed off in time. The paper says, however, that the metro management together with Prague city hall are trying to hide behind guidelines and regulations and therefore in the end no one in particular will be found responsible for the damage inflicted by the flooding. Pravo quotes a construction specialist who wished to remain anonymous as saying that after months of investigation, police and experts will come to the conclusion that all regulations were duly observed and there is no individual culprit.

Mlada fronta Dnes predicts a tough weekend for drivers in the Czech Republic. Traditionally, the last August weekend brings traffic jams and tailbacks all over the country as Czechs come back from their summer holidays en masse before school starts again in September. This year the situation is going to be even more difficult with so many roads destroyed or damaged by the floods. Josef Tesarik from the traffic police told the paper that they are expecting a total collapse in Prague where cars could get stuck for hours.

Staying with Mlada fronta Dnes, the paper carries a warning of the chief hygiene officer of the Czech Republic, Michael Vit, who urges everyone to dispose of all food products which could have been contaminated by flood water. There have been cases of people trying to rescue and sell products which were not visibly affected. Doctor Vit says that those who consume such food or drinks put themselves at serious risk of infectious disease. Even clothes which came into contact with floodwater and were washed afterwards could leave people with unpleasant rashes or eczema.

Pravo writes that the Interior Ministry refuses to disclose information about the secret anti-nuclear government shelter which was damaged by the recent flood. The paper says that allegedly the shelter was equipped with state-of-the-art technology which was supposed to enable the government to operate as usual in cases of war, terrorist attack or other crisis situations. A ministry official told Pravo only one thing about the shelter - that it exists. The rest remains classified information.

Pravo carries a story about the man who stabbed a policeman to death at Muzeum metro station in Prague earlier this month. Only a short time after Czech police had verified the man's identity, the 53-year old Russian Alexander Krucinin committed suicide in a Prague prison. According to a prison official, Krucinin hanged himself on a rope made from torn sheets tied to a window bar. At the time of his death, Alexander Krucinin was alone in his cell and he had only 18 minutes to make his noose and hang himself, Pravo reports.

Lidove noviny features a large photo of the famous Czech ice-hockey player Jaromir Jagr with a happy grin on his face. No wonder - the 30-year old billionaire passed his school-leaving exam on Thursday. As a teenager Jagr was so preoccupied with ice hockey that he found no time to finish secondary school. Having now passed his school-leaving exams in Czech, English, Economics and Marketing, Jaromir says that at 30 one is much more mature and experienced than at the age of 18 when the exam is usually taken which makes the exam easier. Now he wants to quickly return to ice hockey but he is seriously considering the possibility of furthering his education.