Derweil in Tschechien... 3/26
23.01.2026
Shock after violence in Chřibská
Two people were killed and six injured in a shooting in the town hall of Chřibská in the Schluckenauer Zipfel on Monday. The perpetrator, according to the police a 39-year-old recidivist criminal living in Chřibská, had first started shooting at the town hall from the house opposite, then entered the building with four weapons and started shooting. The mayor Jan Macháč was shot, the janitor was shot and another person was injured. When the police arrived, the perpetrator injured three officers and then shot himself. An employee of the town hall was apparently shot by a shot from a police weapon. She and the second injured person are still in hospital in Ústí nad Labem, but their lives are not in danger. The other injured people have already been discharged home.
The police suspect that the perpetrator was motivated by personal problems. They ruled out an act of terrorism. The man was a drug addict and dealt in drugs. According to the police, the perpetrator had targeted a specific person in the town hall. The police found two more weapons in his apartment. None of the weapons were held legally by the perpetrator.
The shock in the small town, once known for the oldest glassworks in the Czech Republic, is profound. The family of the janitor who was shot dead has been very helpful. The Ústí district has now set up a donation account and has itself provided 200,000 crowns (approx. 8,300 euros) to support the janitor's family and the injured, as well as everything else that is now needed in Chřibská.
The case also highlights the problem of illegal gun ownership in the Czech Republic. An amnesty is to allow illegal weapons to be handed in to the police or legalized by the end of June. Overall, legal gun ownership has also been on the rise for years (we reported on this in issue 2/26).
Moldava station building up for sale again
The project to set up a railroad museum in the station building in the village of Moldava on the border with Saxony has failed. The association that bought the station in the fall of 2024 has still not been able to pay the purchase price. The municipality of Moldava has therefore put the building up for sale again. Interested parties have until the end of February to submit an offer. There is no minimum price. The amount of the price is also not necessarily the decisive criterion. The municipal council, which will decide on the sale, will also make the decision dependent on the future use of the building.
The concept of a railroad museum looked promising. However, the association, which previously operated a similar museum with its own locomotives and other rail vehicles in Zdice in Central Bohemia, failed to meet its payment obligations. After a down payment of 5000,000 crowns, nothing more came. A purchase price of 3 million crowns (125,000 euros) had been agreed. "We had already extended the payment deadline for the other installments twice. It couldn't go on like this," commented the mayor of Moldava, David Leitermann.
However, it is more than uncertain whether the new tender will be successful. The municipality has repeatedly tried to sell the building in the past without success. Who would want a huge building at the end of a railroad line right on the border with Saxony? It would help if the former continuous rail link from Most (Brüx) via Osek (Ossegg) and Dubí (Eichwald) and Moldava on to Holzhau and Rechenberg-Bienenmühle was once again used continuously as far as Freiberg. However, efforts by the municipalities along the railroad line in particular have not yet been crowned with success. The German side would have to rebuild the last section from Holzhau to Moldava.
Nevertheless, the association is fighting for its museum project and has launched a fundraising campaign to raise 1 million crowns. So far, over 70,000 crowns have already been received.
Kofola takes over natural cosmetics manufacturer
The company Nobilis Tilia, based in the small village of Vlčí hora (Wolfsberg) on the edge of the Bohemian Switzerland National Park, has made a name for itself in the production of natural cosmetics not only in the Czech Republic. The company has now been sold to a new owner more than 30 years after it was founded. It goes by the illustrious name of Kofola, which is also known to some in Saxony as Czech Kola. However, the beverage manufacturer Kofola, based in Ostrava, produces not only the popular Kofola, but also many other brands. Kofola has 14 production plants in five countries in Central and Southern Europe. Its portfolio also includes the mineral waters Rajec and Korunní, the beers Holba, Zubr and Litovel, as well as the producer of herbal blends and teas Leros. Nobilis Tilia will now also be affiliated with Leros. Kofola wants to create synergies and continue to grow, particularly in the field of natural cosmetics.
Nobilis Tilia was founded in 1990 by the teacher and natural scientist Zbyněk Šedivý. The company name is the Latin translation of Krásná Lípa (Schönlinde), the small town where Vlčí hora is located. The married couple Adela and Petr Zrubeckovi have been involved in the company since the mid-1990s. The trio focused primarily on aromatherapy based on essential oils and skin care. The company headquarters not only produced products, but also sold them in a store. A tea room, a beauty salon and a herb garden were established. Gradually, Nobilis Tilia developed into a major employer in the tourist area.
"After 30 years in business, we felt it was time to pass on the reins. We share the same philosophy and values with Kofola, as well as a passion for herbs and sustainability. We see potential for synergies, the development of new opportunities and expansion in this connection," Adéla Zrubecká is quoted as saying in a press release.
Map to become UNESCO heritage
The oldest map in the Czech Republic is well on its way to becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With its inclusion in the National Register of the Czech Republic, it has now taken a decisive step towards nomination. Printed in 1518, it is kept not so far away from Saxony, in the State Regional Archive in Litoměřice. The archive looks after this important work on behalf of its owner, the Bishopric of Litoměřice.
The map with the oldest depiction of Bohemia and Moravia is the work of the teacher, doctor and cartographer Nikolaus Claudianus, known as Mikuláš Klaudián in Czech, which is why it is also known as the Klaudián map. Klaudián had enlightening intentions with this map. He belonged to the Bohemian Brethren or the Unitas Fratrum (Unity of Brethren), as they called themselves. This had emerged from the Hussite movement in the 15th century. Klaudián designed the map himself, which incidentally was intended for pilgrims and was therefore oriented to the south, i.e. towards Rome. He had it printed by the Nuremberg printer Hieronymus Höltzel in 1518.
River Bílina is freed from pipes
In the 1980s, the River Bílina (Biela) had to disappear into pipes. The reason for this was open-cast lignite mining in northern Bohemia. No stone was left unturned between Chomutov (Komotau) and Most (Brüx). Towns and villages were demolished, railroad lines and roads were rerouted, lakes and parks disappeared. To this day, the landscape is dominated by open-cast mines, power stations, high-voltage power lines and coal trains. The only link in the lunar landscape between the two towns was the Ervenický koridor, named after the small town of Ervenice (Seestadtl) with around 5,000 inhabitants, which also had to make way for the open-cast mines in the 1950s. From then on, the railroad line, a four-lane road and the Bílina river ran through the corridor in underground pipes.
This is now set to change. This year, the Povodí Ohře water company is starting to free the river from the pipes. Depending on the weather, the first work is due to start in the spring. A new riverbed will be created over a length of almost 5 kilometers. The Bílina will be temporarily diverted into a temporary bed. After completion, the river will gradually be reintroduced to life.
For a long time, the Bílina was considered the most polluted river in the Czech Republic. It rises at the Uppila meadow in the Ore Mountains, south of the 878-metre-high Kamenná hůrka (Stone Hill) peak, flows through the small town of Jirkov and then through the coal and chemical area in the foothills of the Ore Mountains, through the towns of Most andBílina (Bilin), past other open-cast mines and power stations and later past the Spolchemie chemical plant near Ústí nad Labem before flowing into the Elbe near the main railway station.
Dolní Žleb gets a fire station
The Czech Republic is improving flood protection for the small town of Dolní Žleb (Niedergrund) on the Elbe just before the border with Saxony. Dolní Žleb is a district of Děčín (Tetschen) that is regularly no longer accessible by car during floods, but only by train. For this reason, the fire and rescue services had to move their equipment from Děčín to Dolní Žleb in advance in the event of flooding. However, this was done under very provisional conditions. Now the village has found a suitable building for the fire and rescue service. The town of Děčín bought the old fire station building from a private owner. The fire department intends to renovate the building on its own and store equipment here in future, as well as set up a heated rest room, shower and toilet. Parts of the fire-fighting equipment and a vehicle are to be relocated to Dolní Žleb in the long term. The same applies to the rescue service.