Press Release of the Defense Minister, Olta Xhaçka

Published: Friday, 01 December 2017 12:25

What we experienced was a difficult but a totally manageable night. To the unusual situation due to rainfall, the Armed Forces and the entire state structure have responded with the utmost commitment to cope with the situation.

500 Armed Forces officers have been engaged to cope with the situation in the worst-affected area, mainly in the districts of Tirana, Durrës and Gjirokastra. Actually, the effectives of the Support Comand, Land Force, Military Police, and the General Staff Support Battalion have managed to evacuate 315 people.

250 of these evacuated people were blocked on the Tirana - Durrës, Kashar and Valias highways, while the remaining in the villages of Kruja. Only a few moments ago, the Armed Forces officers evacuated a 5-month old baby and his mother in the spa area of the municipality of Kruja.
Currently, at the Health Center of the Land Force Command in Zallherr, 13 people who were evacuated from the Armed Forces have received the necessary aid shortly before midnight in Valias.
Today, it is expected an exacerbation of the situation, especially in the southern part of the country. Measures are being taken to manage the situation in the river basins of Vjosa, Shkumbini and Seman, where increased water flows are expected.
Measures are being taken in some segments of these rivers to organize the evacuation of endangered residents, starting from the areas affected from Vjosa River.

I would like to make an appeal to all the inhabitants in the areas affected by the rainfall, all those who live very close to the river beds, near the dams or in areas that historically risk flooding: please leave immediately from your apartments and cooperate with Armed Forces and emergency structures to be evacuated. I insist on this call after having taken the reconfirmation by the Civil Emergencies and the Institute of Geoscience, Energy, Water and Environment since an increase in the precipitation intensity is expected during the following hours, which can lead to an increase in the water level in the river beds.

The entire state structure is in state of readiness and will be near you, day and night to cope with the situation in order to ensure the safety of life until complete normalization of the situation. Please, Help us deal with the situation together, the cooperation with you is the greatest warrantee to secure the lives of each one of you!

The Armed Forces have engaged new human and technical capacities to shift towards Fier and Vlora as reinforcement and support for the local authorities and above all to ensure the safety of life for all affected inhabitants.