02:21Slovakia: Village overtaken by abandoned cars near Ukrainian border
The small Slovak village of Ubla has become a ghost town for abandoned cars, as seen in a report filmed on Thursday.
The cars, some of them without any plates, others with plates from several EU countries - even as far as the United Kingdom - were abandoned by their owners throughout the village, which is located next to the border with Ukraine.
The problem was evident for several years, but has reportedly come to a head in last months, after Ukraine introduced new fees for the import of foreign cars. Those who cannot pay simply leave their car on the Slovakian side of the border. With the owners failing to return, many vehicles have been completely stripped with spare parts sold on elsewhere.
According to Ubla mayor Nadezda Sirkova "it's a big problem and there are big apprehensions not just from my side as mayor of the village but also from the inhabitants of the village that the number of those cars will increase and the village will become a graveyard."
Some Ubla families had allowed Ukrainian owners to park their cars on their land for a small fee. The owners never returned, resulting in illegal parking spaces filled with abandoned vehicles.
"I don't see any solution of this situation and I am afraid that it will be just getting worse and after some time it will become a big, huge problem."
02:21The small Slovak village of Ubla has become a ghost town for abandoned cars, as seen in a report filmed on Thursday.
The cars, some of them without any plates, others with plates from several EU countries - even as far as the United Kingdom - were abandoned by their owners throughout the village, which is located next to the border with Ukraine.
The problem was evident for several years, but has reportedly come to a head in last months, after Ukraine introduced new fees for the import of foreign cars. Those who cannot pay simply leave their car on the Slovakian side of the border. With the owners failing to return, many vehicles have been completely stripped with spare parts sold on elsewhere.
According to Ubla mayor Nadezda Sirkova "it's a big problem and there are big apprehensions not just from my side as mayor of the village but also from the inhabitants of the village that the number of those cars will increase and the village will become a graveyard."
Some Ubla families had allowed Ukrainian owners to park their cars on their land for a small fee. The owners never returned, resulting in illegal parking spaces filled with abandoned vehicles.
"I don't see any solution of this situation and I am afraid that it will be just getting worse and after some time it will become a big, huge problem."