Hotel in Elenite to be Demolished After Tragedy: The State Acts

A week after the devastating wave that hit the "Elenite" resort and claimed four lives, the state is taking decisive action.

The National Construction Control Directorate (DNCC) announced to the media that they are ready to proceed with the demolition of two sites. The water park, located within the complex, is among those that will be removed. However, a hotel positioned in the upper part of the holiday village, built on the concrete bed of the river, should also fall under the bulldozers.

The news that the "Negresco" hotel is facing demolition has sparked numerous comments in the area. The opinions of the local residents are varied. For some, the demolition of the hotel is seen as a mistake, as it represents one of the largest buildings in the initial part of the complex. Others welcome the decision, seeing it as retribution and a necessity to restore the natural balance and the natural flow of water. Police teams continue to be present in "Elenite", restricting access to outsiders.

Significant shortcomings in the construction in "Elenite" - buildings erected on a riverbed, and lack of documentation - are becoming increasingly apparent.

"Inspection reports will be drawn up for the removal of these two illegal sites. These are the water park and the correction of the Kozluka River, the Drashtela River," explained Eng. Lilyana Petrova, Head of DNCC.

According to the National Construction Control Directorate, the lack of the necessary documents for the concreting of the river has led to the need to demolish the hotel, as it was built on it. "This will be at the expense of the perpetrators. If they do not remove the buildings voluntarily, they will be removed by the state, after which claims for the recovery of the sums will be filed," Petrova emphasized.

The news of the upcoming demolition of the hotel due to the concreted river caused surprise among the residents.

Elenite - between the river and the concrete: How human intervention turned a resort into a risk zone - that is the question.

"The hotel has Act 16. How will they demolish it? Another question is how they obtained this Act 16," asked Simeon, a local resident.

"If it is legal, how will it happen? Let the specialists rule whether it is legal or illegal? Who gave the documents? I don't know, Bulgaria has to decide," said Volodya.

Construction in the resort is also subject to investigation by the prosecutor's office. They announced that they have collected all the necessary documents to determine whether it was illegal and whether it was among the causes of the tragic consequences that claimed four human lives. Actions in the building of the mayor's office and the regional DNCC in order to discover drawings and permits were held on October 8.

Eng. Yancho Raykov, director of RDNCC-Burgas, stated that a thorough review of a large volume of materials is forthcoming in order to determine the number of affected properties. "At this moment, we only have one file that we have worked on," he emphasized.

"There are all kinds of documents in Nesebar Municipality. There is an inspection and when there are results, they will be announced," explained Nikolay Dimitrov, Mayor of Nesebar Municipality.

To the media, the director of the DNCC explained that the responsibility for issuing permits for the category of sites built in "Elenite" lies entirely with the local administration.