No reparations from the mine, Recsk mudslide victims prepare class-action lawsuit

Crickets at the andesite mine in Recsk. Not a machinery in sight, no production is stirring. A couple of deer have been wandering the lands that once used to be vegetation, but it is unlikely that they are participating in any high-level mining activity. Similar silence from the mine about last year’s mudslides. No statement that has acknowledged responsibility. Victims are yet to be compensated. The promised government assistance remains just that – promised. The police are still investigating, and the victims are working with a law firm to prepare a class-action lawsuit.

The mine opened in the Heves County settlement in 2020 during the pandemic-induced state of emergency. Mayor Sándor Nagy declared the land owned by an entrepreneur as a mining area without much deliberation. In December 2021, the Heves County Government Office granted a five-year environmental permit to Andezit-Bau Bányászati Kft. for extraction.

Heves County residents were only confronted by the impending quarry when construction machines started rolling in, not a few hundred meters from their houses. The public forum about the issue, held in September 2020, was announced quietly at the town hall and on its website. Only seven residents attended the forum – although the mayor insists this number was actually a booming 14. Hardly anyone knew about the project.

In the summer of 2023, Andezit-Bau Kft transformed into a joint-stock company (Zrt.). Among the owners are Dr. István Fiák, a good friend of lawyer and vice-president of the Hungarian National Skating Federation Lajos Kósa, and István Nagy, a businessman from Debrecen. Nagy has won several public procurement contracts in recent years with his road construction company, Nagymester Kft – most recently, for building the access road to the Debrecen North-Western Economic Zone for a net value of 1,553,342,394 HUF.

“Not a public figure”

The quarry had a bad start. Then, torrential rains hit twice in June 2023, and a mudslide poured onto houses at the edge of the village. Forty-eight people were evacuated from Hunyadi Street, many of whom were placed in temporary accommodations.

According to reports, the victims received emergency aid of 100,000 HUF from the municipality. The police launched an investigation for negligent endangerment in the course of professional activities. The residents of Hunyadi Street were housed in the local sports hall.

No one could have foreseen the rains – but residents had expressed concerns months ahead of the slide.

Dr. István Fiák was asked by 444.hu for his opinion on the matter, but he stated that he is not a public figure and therefore would not comment.

Nevertheless, some houses have become dangerous and uninhabitable. The government initially decided to allocate 500 million HUF for compensation, entrusting MR Lakásalap with the task, but on September 19 of this year, this government decision was revoked.

The National Mining Authority launched an investigation, which concluded that the company had deviated significantly from the technical operational plan that was approved. Andezit-Bau was fined 3 million HUF.

Attila Sztojka, then government commissioner for Roma affairs and now a state secretary, spoke with the residents of Hunyadi Street after the rainstorm and promised to resolve their housing situation individually. Now, a year has passed without progress, and even the promised government aid has been withdrawn. We reached out to Attila Sztojka for a comment on the situation, but received no response by the time this article was published.

Mayor Sándor Nagy says that the company is buying up properties, and several families have moved away. However, other sources have revealed that only two families have been able to reach an agreement on selling their properties, while the situation for the others remains uncertain.

When asked about the expected revenue from local business taxes, the mayor declined to provide details, citing tax confidentiality. He had previously mentioned a potential revenue of 80 to 100 million HUF, which would be significant for a village with a 450 million HUF budget.

 

The anticipated job creation has also yet to materialize. Due to the mechanized nature of the mining operations, few workers are needed. Only two or three local resident have found employment at the quarry thus far.

The quarry denies responsibility for the damage

According to our information, MJB-Gép Kft., a subcontractor of Andezit-Bau, owes money to several companies. SKUBLICS and Tsai Kft., which drilled blast holes at the site, stated that the company owes them around 20 million HUF, but these aren’t the company’s only outstanding payments – although others opted against publicly speaking about the debt.

We contacted Andezit-Bau, but managing director István Nagy has yet to respond. Financial reports show that the company appears to be doing well, with an after-tax profit of 122 million HUF in 2023.

We also reached out to the Magyar György and Associates law firm, which represents the victims. Attorney Dr. Szabolcs Balogh responded to say that they had the opportunity to settle out of court but the negotiations were unsuccessful.

“The quarry’s position remains that they did not cause any damage, but in my opinion, this stance is hard to maintain,” said Dr Balogh. “A criminal investigation is underway, and the forensic mining expert report was finally produced after much delay. The expert confirmed the findings and circumstances established by the National Mining Authority in its administrative procedure—specifically, that the quarry did not adhere to the operational permit. It began mining in areas where it should not have, and it deposited waste material in places where it was not allowed, outside the designated mining boundary. As a result, the rain washed this waste material onto the village, particularly Hunyadi Street, where it should never have been.”

Dr. Balogh also noted that the police and investigative authorities have obfuscated enough to keep the victims’ legal representatives in the dark. Obtaining any information has been difficult.

“The process started with us being excluded from accessing any data,” said Dr. Balogh. “What we have managed to obtain is very limited. We know that the mining expert’s report has been completed and that it confirms the previous investigation’s findings. The waste material was there due to the quarry’s illegal activities – the causal chain and connection is entirely clear.”

The attorney was frustrated that they were not notified of the time and place that the victim interviews were held, despite the legal requirement to notify representatives and the law firm’s continued cooperation.

He said: “I could forgive the authorities for not sending a formal summons, but it is standard practice for the officer in charge to at least pick up the phone and inform the legal representative, saying, ‘We are interviewing your client.’”

The authorities were reluctant to release the expert reports related to the victims’ own properties.

Victims preparing for a class-action lawsuit

“Our clients have lost their patience,” said Dr. Balogh. “While we await the outcome of the criminal proceedings, class-action and civil lawsuits will be initiated. The quarry’s stance that they caused no damage is unsustainable, as the available data and expert opinions suggest the opposite. In my view, it is absurd to open and permit the operation of a quarry so close to a residential area. When the quarry’s activities cause damage, the victims should not be left without effective help or compensation, except by filing a lawsuit. This is unacceptable.”

According to the law firm, it is telling that the quarry did not challenge the Mining Authority’s administrative decision, which concluded with a fine. Whether anyone will be charged in the criminal investigation remains to be seen. Only individuals can be charged in a criminal case – which means an individual or individuals have to be identified as the responsible party in the criminal proceedings.

Attorney György Magyar mentioned that the law firm initially considered filing a test lawsuit for one victim, with the results of that case guiding further actions for the other victims.

However, the affected victims’ situation has not improved since the mudslide, and their living conditions remain dire without any meaningful assistance – so the firm has decided to take more drastic steps.

“The victims are desperate and deeply frustrated,” said Magyar. “Given the quarry’s stubborn denial and ongoing resistance and the central government’s rejection of any settlement efforts, there is no longer any rationality to the test case idea. As a result, a class-action lawsuit is now needed to enforce our clients’ rights.”

The Heves County Police Department confirmed that the case is ongoing but declined to provide further details.

Translated by Vanda Mayer. The original, Hungarian version of this story was written by Zsuzsa Zimre and can be here. Cover photo: the Recsk andesite mine in 2023