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Record cold temperatures in the Czech Republic have taken a severe toll, with nine deaths from exposure recorded by the end of the weekend. Most of those who died were homeless, among them three people in Prague and four in Ostrava. Michael Raymond Stannett is the head of the Salvation Army in the Czech Republic; he described the situation on the ground.

A photograph taken from Prague’s landmark Žižkov TV tower has set a new record for the largest known spherical panoramic photograph in the world. The picture offers a rare 360 degree view over the city and measures 18 Gigapixels, obliterating a record from 2007 - a shot taken in Harlem that measured 13 Gigapixels. The photographer of the record shot, Jeffrey Martin, at an interview at Žižkov TV tower talked about how this idea was first born.

As the Copenhagen climate talks draw to a close, hopes have dimmed of reaching any significant agreement that could form the basis of an eventually legally binding climate deal to replace the existing Kyoto Protocol that expires in 2012. Although many are disappointed, Czech climate expert Jan Pretel says such an outcome was only to be expected.

Three years ago Prague’s main railway station Hlavní Nádraží was not a nice place to be – poorly-maintained and dirty, it afforded travelers little opportunity of refreshment. A major reconstruction launched in 2006 is radically transforming the premises which now afford modern terminals, sales counters, boutiques and restaurants. Now the company Grandi Stazioni which is conducting the reconstruction has gone a step further – offering weary travelers some art as well.

Traffic police in the Czech Republic have a new year’s resolution, and that is to cut the increasing rate of accidents in the country that are related to driving under the influence of alcohol. With the number of alcohol-related road deaths on the rise from year to year, in 2010 the police are going to introduce the somewhat radical measure of giving a breathalyser test to every driver they stop. Christian Falvey has the story.

On Wednesday a small bank in the district of Prague 4 witnessed drama of a kind rarely seen in the Czech Republic, when an armed robber took two people hostage at gunpoint and demanded millions in crowns, or he would begin shooting. The assailant, who had appeared in the branch a day earlier, communicated his demands through a police negotiator in the stand-off which lasted almost four hours. In the end, he got nothing: only handcuffs and a quick ride to a police cell.

The recent bout of freezing cold weather, with temperatures dropping to minus fifteen degrees at night, has highlighted the plight of the country’s homeless. Shelters are bursting at the seams, and charity organizations are handing out hot soup and tea to help warm those unfortunate enough to have to spend their days – and sometimes nights - on a park bench. Now one restaurant owner has come up with a proposal that might make a difference.

Micronesia and the Czech Republic are twelve thousand kilometers apart but the small Pacific island is concerned that increased emissions from a coal-burning power station in western Bohemia will speed up global warming and increase the threat of Micronesia being swallowed up by the Pacific Ocean.

With Christmas fast approaching, many Czech consumers are tempted to take out loans. Legislation on loan conditions in the Czech Republic is still vague and unlicensed lending companies take advantage of these holes in the constitution, preying on ill-informed consumers. Often, penalties for not paying installments on time are 700 percent of the original installment. David Šmejkal, director of the debt advice center Poradna při finanční tísni helps customers who have fallen prey to the companies who offer these loans.

New Year’s Day will be a real red letter day for many prisoners in the Czech Republic. Under a new criminal code being introduced on January 1 some crimes are being reclassified as misdemeanours – meaning those who are currently in jail on such charges will either be released or have their sentences reduced.