The lookout tower on Velký Kosíř has been closed due to faults

photo: http://www.rozhledna-kosir.cz/

Slatinky - The lookout tower on the top of Velký Košíř near Slatinky in the Prostějov region, which was opened in the summer of 2013, had to be closed this week due to defects until further notice. The tower operator is trying to claim the defects, said Hana Rozsypalová, chairwoman of the Kosířsko Microregion, to ČTK today. The construction of the lookout tower cost 6.5 million crowns, with three million contributed by the Olomouc region for the project.

"The closure of the lookout tower is the only possible solution. We are committed to ensuring that the entire facility is safe for visitors, and we want the longevity of the tower to be as long as possible. Unfortunately, during operation, such defects emerged in the execution that do not give us these guarantees," said Rozsypalová.

Representatives of the microregion discovered the first shortcomings concerning the slope of the terraces shortly after the lookout tower opened. Following last year's affair with stolen nuts from the tower, defects in the staircase's construction were uncovered, which have not yet been able to be claimed, according to Rozsypalová.

"Given that the construction company was lukewarm towards the previous complaints from the microregion, and several defects were denied or their resolution was unacceptable, the representatives of the microregion requested an independent expert assessment," said Rozsypalová.

The decision to close the lookout tower on the Velký Kosíř hill came after the expert assessment was processed. According to the vice-chairman of the Kosířsko microregion, Milan Elfmark, the authors of the assessment recommended closing the tower to prevent further deterioration of the defects. Elfmark noted that it is currently impossible to estimate whether and when the claimed defects will be resolved. The association is waiting for a response from the company that built the lookout tower. "We hope that everything will be properly investigated, qualitatively repaired, and put back into operation as soon as possible," said Milan Klimeš (ANO), the deputy governor of the Olomouc region.

The lookout tower, from which there is a view of the flat Haná region, Drahanská Highlands, Bouzov Hills, and the silhouette of the Nízký Jeseník, has a stone base with facilities, and its tube is wooden. The wooden structure is complemented by steel elements. The upper platform is at a height of 25 meters. A lookout tower existed on Velký Košíř from 1927 to 1939, after which it had to be removed due to poor technical condition.

Velký Košíř (441 m above sea level) is the dominant feature of the Haná Plain, located between the towns of Kostelec na Hané, Čechy pod Kosířem, and Slatinice. It is surrounded by many myths. In 1990, the Velký Kosíř Nature Park was established.