Nicuşor Dan: The tragedy from Salina Praid reminds us how vulnerable the communities in the face of extreme natural phenomena are
Nicușor Dan, the President of Romania, holds a press conference at the Cotroceni Palace in Bucharest, June 4, 2025. Inquam Photos / George Călin
“We have a clear responsibility: to protect the natural heritage and the lives of those living in these areas,” President Nicuşor Dan said on Saturday.
President Nicuşor Dan says, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the Romanian Geography Society, that “environmental degradation, climate change, accelerated urbanization, natural risks or geopolitical tensions are challenges that cannot be understood and approached without solid knowledge of the geographical space”.
“The tragedy of Salina Praid reminds us painfully how vulnerable the communities are in the face of extreme natural phenomena, which not only affect the local infrastructure or economy, but, above all, the people whose lives are endangered, sometimes from one day to another,” Nicuşor Dan said on Saturday.
“We have a clear responsibility: to protect the natural heritage and the lives of those living in these areas. There is a need for concrete, fast and efficient actions from the authorities, in collaboration with experts. Equally important to cultivate this responsibility among young generations, through education and through the power of personal example,” added the president.
In this context, emphasizes the president, the role of the Romanian geography society becomes even more valuable.
“Geography, as a school discipline, teaches students about identity, belonging and responsibility towards the environment, offers them essential landmarks to understand the world. In this context, the teachers who teach this subject become trainers of civic consciousness, guiding the new generations to an informed, balanced and solidarity vision,” Nicușor Dan said.
The situation at Salina Praid remains critical, being “flooded with 4 million cubic meters of water”, as the head of DSU, Raed Arafat, said.
Dozens of people have been evacuated in the last days of Praid commune, while the works for the deviation of the Corund stream began, which flooded the saline. The works are carried out among craters and sandbags, according to a report by HotNews in Praid.
Report life in Praid commune, under the threat of collapse. “People have been evacuated. The problem is that we do not know how long”
