Serbian Arms Factory Devastated in Blasts

Predrag Maric, chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ emergency department, said that the first explosion happened at around 4.30pm on Monday in an isolated storage facility and that the last strong blast was heard at around 5.30am on Tuesday.

He added that it was impossible to predict for how long detonations at the facility would last.

There were no casualties in the accident.

The company's general manager Zoran Stefanovic told Beta news agency the fire had caused great material damage, and that 60 workers were in the factory when the blaze broke out but all managed to escape.

According to Stefanovic, the 2,000-square-metre facility has been completely burnt down.

Defence Minister Dragan Sutanovac, who traveled to Cacak on Monday night, said he expected the factory to be rebuilt with the help of insurance claims and funds set aside by the local administration.

Leader of the opposition New Serbia party and a former mayor of Cacak, Velimir Ilic, accused Sutanovac and his ruling Democrats, DS, of being responsible for the accident because they had appointed people loyal to the party to head the company.