Ammunition Hotspots, Xhaçka: Our objective is to clean Albania by the end of 2018

: Published: Saturday, 21 October 2017 16:05

Within the next year, the Armed Forces will complete the clearance of all areas contaminated by war ammunitions and explosive waste in different parts of the territory, the so-called hotspots. The explosions of weapons and ammunition depots throughout the country, during the riots in 1997, contributed to the deterioration of the situation and the widening of the map of hotspots in almost the entire territory of our country. According to estimates, the polluted regions casualties recorded are of 151 dead people and 851 injured ones.

Six years ago, 19 hotspots were registered throughout the country, for the clearance of which are currently engaged forces from the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Company of the Armed Forces part of Support Command of the Armed Forces.

Minister of Defense Olta Xhaçka inspected the work initiated three months ago for the cleaning of the Selica hotspot (Burrel). 20 years ago, the explosion in tunnels filled with armament caused 23 casualties among the villagers of Selica village.

"The Armed Forces are carrying out a dangerous job and I want to congratulate them for the extraordinary dedication in the service of the citizens. Out of the 19 hotspots identified in 2011, today there are only four, where currently it is being worked with the support of the US government. Our objective is to clean all these hotspots by the end of 2018 in compliance with all safety standards and make it possible to use them for civilian purposes. Today I want to encourage all citizens who live near the dangerous areas to notify the Armed Forces whenever they may see artillery ammunition or dangerous explosive disposal that endangers the security of their lives. Calling at number 129 will help the engineering corps to identify the areas and intervene on time to avoid serious incidents“, - said the Minister after having inspected the situation inside the tunnel.

In 3 months of "Selica" operation there were found over 390 thousand pieces of ammunition and cartridges of various calibers, and it was checked an area of 130 m² of one of tunnels which is on a clearance process.

The Albanian Mines and Munitions Coordination Office (AMMCO), as a specialized structure of the Ministry of Defense facility, a team of professionals, set up over the last decade with the support of UNDP and various donors, coordinate and monitor the cleaning operations in hotspots and simultaneously certify the areas after their full clearance.