LATEST FINDINGS ON THE EXPLOSIVES FACTORY BLAST, WHICH KILLED 15 PEOPLE

Up to 100 tonnes of land mines had been transported on the Bulgarian roads without the signs and markings on vehicles and without escort.

The Head of Bulgaria’s National Investigation Service announced that the land mines were intended for the explosives decommissioning factory in Gorni Lom, which at the beginning of October was devastated by a blast and 15 people were killed. The blast investigation shows that the work conditions at the factory were at a poor standard.

So far, the investigation has found that the number of land mines deliveries to the factory had sharply increased after mid-July 2014. The reason was a delay in the implementation of a contract with the Greek authorities. Every day, 4-5 lorries with explosives arrived at Kulata border crossing point between Bulgaria and Greece. The lorries had been escorted by a vehicle of the Greek Military Police, Fire Services and Police. However, In Bulgaria they were met by two pensioners.

Thus the explosives set off from the border on route to Gorni Lom, crossing half of the country, without security escort. However it transpired that the company had not violated the requirements of the transportation of explosive substances regulation.

According to the investigation, shortly before the tragedy, a shift of 12 people was supposed to utilize 8,000 land mines per day, which exceeded the workplace safety standards. The investigation is also exploring a possibility that there was a fault in the factory’s construction.

The most significant finding to date is that the explosion was not caused deliberately.

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