Floods prompt Sunday opening of shops to enhance relief efforts
Ljubljana, 5 August - As shops in Slovenia have been closed on Sundays and holidays for several years now, the country's Civil Protection commander will issue a decree as early as today to open shops selling groceries, hardware and equipment for children to facilitate smooth flood relief efforts.
Ljubljana
Civil Protection commander Srečko Šestan speaking to the press after attending an emergency government session on the catastrophic flash floods.
Photo: Boštjan Podlogar/STA
Ljubljana
Civil Protection commander Srečko Šestan speaking to the press after attending an emergency government session on the catastrophic flash floods.
Photo: Boštjan Podlogar/STA
The decree will also allow longer opening hours, but shops will decide on this on their own, Civil Protection commander Srečko Šestan said after Saturday's government session.
In line with Slovenian law, the government cannot open shops on its own, as this would be against the Trade Act.
It can however act upon the Civil Protection commander's initiative, Economy Minister Matjaž Han explained earlier in the day.
Mercator, a leading retailer, already announced that 89 groceries and 21 hardware shops will be open on Sunday.
Many shops in the flooded areas could not open on Friday either due to being flooded or staff being unable to come to work, but some have reopened today while access to some is still impeded.
Both Spar and Lild said all their shops are open on Saturday, except Spar's in the flooded town of Nazarje in the Savinja Valley.
Mercator and Spar said they are trying to keep their shops well stocked on bottled water, bread and other most urgent supplies, while it is still difficult to reach certain shops.
Mercator will moreover donate together with the company Jamnica over 45,000 litres of water for the most affected people and for Civil Protection and firefighter teams, and Spar said it delivered food and water to several areas in the country to be distributed among the affected locals.