Earthquake, Prime Minister Rama gathers the structures at Ministry of Defense: Every citizen in difficulty must be contacted

: Published: Sunday, 22 September 2019 14:03

Defense Minister Olta Xhaçka underlined the measures that were taken to accommodate citizens who refuse to go in their houses and the proceedings with the damage assessment, in a meeting with Prefects, Heads of the Armed Forces and Civil Emergencies, also attended by Prime Minister Rama and Minister of Interior Sandër Lleshaj.

"It's been a very intense night for all Emergency Headquarters, the white coats, the Armed Forces. We have all been on the terrain to alleviate the effects of the earthquake and help people who have spent the night out due to panic and injuries. We will do our best to accommodate everyone. Many sites have been set up to accommodate citizens, mainly in Tirana and Durrës, but all of us can do more and better, so that nobody lacks care on these difficult days. To set up the assessment teams as soon as possible to assess the real damage of the earthquake and to assure all citizens that we will do our best to compensate them”, - said the Defense Minister.

Minister of Interior Sandër Lleshaj announced the increased readiness of not only the State Police but also the firefighters. His request was to contacting each resident and to ascertaining any damage caused.
Prime Minister Edi Rama, first of all paid attention to communicate to citizens who are still frightened and stressed that the cracks do not necessarily pose a risk.

"Any crack and any visible breach of any building must be inspected, as it may be the reaction of the 'seismic joint', but it also may be a structural breach that makes it dangerous. So, I would like to ask first of all to move to Durrës, with one goal: every family that goes into that first circle of stress and who stayed out all yesterday night to be contacted”, - underlined the Prime Minister.

Regarding the damages to the buildings, Prime Minister Rama demanded the engagement of specialists of the Institute of Construction to inspect the damage caused to the structures of buildings and create files on the condition of each building.
Also, the Head of Government cited as a history of success the experience of Korca and Erseka villages, whose houses are being rebuilt and will be ready before rainfall begins.

Subsequently, the meeting was chaired by the Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces, Brigadier General Bardhyl Kollçaku, together with the Director of Civil Emergencies, Haki Çako, distributed duties to implement the orders given by Prime Minister Rama.

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Since 16:05 , when the highest 5.8 Richter magnitude was recorded, 297 aftershocks have been recorded so far, with the lowest being of a 2.9 Richter magnitude. According to initial official information, 132 people went to hospitals or health centers in Tirana and Durrës to receive appropriate help. The earthquakes caused material damage, especially in Durrës and Tirana, but fortunately, they were wall cracks or other damages alike. In the coming days the severity of these damages will be verified by experts.

According to initial reports coming from Emergency Headquarters in the prefectures there are in total:

569 damaged buildings
53 flats with damage
5 damaged schools
1 damaged health center
1 damaged storehouse
4 damaged vehicles
1 damaged electric booth
1 damaged suspension bridge

The General Staff of the Armed Forces sent 26 military forces, 3 vehicles, and set up: 4 tents near the “Selman Stermasi” Stadium, 6 tents at the “Don Bosco” Reception Center, 1 tent at “Liqeni i Thatë” Reception Center, 1 tent on “Bulevardi i Ri”.

In total, 19 tents were sent by the General Directorate of State Material Reserves and the Albanian Red Cross to shelter residents with damaged apartments have been set up in the territory of Tirana Municipality. In the territory of Durrës Municipality, two tents were putted up yesterday evening with 40 seats each sent by the General Staff. The GDSMR has provided Durrës Municipality with 40 portable beds, blankets and mattresses.