Prime Minister Edi Rama chairs meeting with officials of the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, Civil Emergencies Directorate and States Reserves, as well as with the prefects to take stock of situation in the country, following the Saturday’s powerful earthquake that hit Albania, causing material damages mainly in the regions of Tirana and Durres:
The Minister of Defence Olta Xhacka: It has been really a tough day. However, we have been totally committed to coping with the earthquake preliminary effects of a relatively powerful quake and, above all, it has been an intensive night for the emergency teams, prefects, the State Police and health personnel, as well as the armed forces, who have been totally committed working on the ground to minimize effects on the first day when the earthquake struck, as well as to aid all people, who due to the panic, or damages to their homes have spent the night outside.
We should stand by every affected family. Many families with small children, because of what happened yesterday and due to the damages to their homes have been forced to ask for our help. Therefore, utmost efforts should be made to provide them with proper sheltering conditions. Until a process of damage assessment completes, we and other state structures should do their utmost to provide safe shelter to everyone. A number of emergency centres have been set up to host affected families in the regions of Tirana and Durres, but a better job can be done to inform people and make sure that nobody is deprived of needed care during these tough days.
Prefect of Tirana Suzana Jahollari: The Civil Emergency teams in Tirana district have been deployed and are intensively working on the ground shortly after the earthquake struck.
Given that the situation was evolving, citizens were overcome with a feeling of panic and that was a more serious problem than the real damages and cracks to the houses. After taking stock of the situation, the Civil Emergencies Committee decided that, in addition to the social centres that were made available by the Municipality, a number of tents be erected close to these centres under the care of municipal police, state police and civil emergency teams to help the affected families. Many of these families wanted to stay in these social care centres. Considering the worst-hit areas in Tirana, we decided to establish six emergency sheltering centres. The residents in Don Bosko neighbourhood were worst affected by panic. By coordinating work with the State Police, the Ministry of Defence, the directorate-general for civil emergencies, and with the Tirana municipality, firefighters, as well as the armed forces, we managed to put up 19 tents.
Currently, municipality and prefecture officials and employees, firefighters, police patrols are deployed in all administrative units to assist citizens. The preliminary data show that some 187 houses and 20 apartment buildings have suffered cracks to their walls. The Emergencies Committee will convene again later on the day, because, as you already said, the most difficult phase starts really now and that has to do with the assessment of damages by the earthquake. The old structures and apartment buildings built before the ‘90s are the ones to have suffered most damages.
Thank you!
Durres Prefect Roland Nasto: In the district of Durres too, immediate actions were underway in collaboration with the local government authorities in three municipalities shortly after the first and second earthquake. Together with the authorities of Durres Municipality we decided to establish a Civil Emergencies Commission that will also coordinate cooperation with other institutions. Given that people were overcome with a feeling of sheer panic, we asked state police and municipal police to inform and lead people to safety.
We have established close cooperation with other institutions too. The Municipality of Durres deployed its emergency teams and workers of three municipal entities. The same actions were undertaken by the Municipality of Kruja and Shijak. Fortunately, no victims are reported. As many as 56 people were treated at Durres regional hospital, with 21 of them suffering fractures. Four people have been hospitalized, but they are in good conditions. At the moment, as many as 188 houses, two school buildings have been damaged and nine apartment buildings have suffered cracks. Teams of experts are already on the ground to assess damages.
Minister of Defence Olta Xhacka: I would like to add that it is crucially important that we do utmost coordinate our efforts with everyone through the Civil Emergencies Committees in order to be as efficient as possible in assisting citizens.
Second, more efforts should be done to inform everyone over all facilities are making available to the families whose homes have been damaged. The summer vacation residences for the State Police and the Armed Forces have been already made available to the affected families. A more intensive work is probably needed to inform and offer this opportunity to the citizens. The district of Durres is indeed the worst hit and damaged and a sense of panic prevails there. We should all work to intensify our efforts especially in Durres. The Civil Emergencies Committee is on high alert. We have deployed several teams on the ground to assist in efforts to open emergency centres and facilitate any potential procedure.
Minister of Interior Sandër Lleshaj: Around at 03:30 p.m. I had the opportunity to inspect several Tirana’s neighbourhoods. What I found was a total commitment of all state structures. It is important that work goes on and we intensify contact with the citizens. The State Police will continue their operations at this very readiness level, mainly in the districts of Tirana and Durres. The fire brigades are also put on high alert. Prefects will lead this entire process. It is important to mobilize all available capacities. I have urged State Police and other state institutions to employ as many as private experts and capacities to help in the efforts to deal with this situation. Durrës remains the focus of our works where problems are more serious. There many details that need to be identified and settled now. Our capacities should be employed to take stock of what has happened. We will cope with this situation in best way possible.
Prime Minister Edi Rama: For the sake of truth, an impressive work has been done in terms of arrangements, swift actions and coordination of the system as a whole. In this aspect, the Civil Emergencies and every other structure that have done their work properly without forgetting to inform people at every moment.
Today is a very difficult day for all of those who bore the brunt and are still experiencing stress. This is a day when we should stand by the people and calmly explain what is happening and very simple aspects. The cracks to the buildings not necessarily pose threat to their structure as the cracks are on the façade, and it can’t be called a crack when the seismic gap worked well between adjacent building. The seismic gaps are internal structural sections designed to weaken impact.
On the other hand, it is important to verify every crack professionally and define whether those cracks represent the seismic gap that is especially designed for this purpose, or the buildings’ structure has been damaged posing risk to it.
We should all move immediately to Durres in order to closely contact every distressed family that have spent the night outside their homes. Based on the data collected by the Prefecture, teams will be sent to the affected families and take note of their problems and worries. Each and every one of you here, including the State Police structures, together with the local government and social service structures should be deployed to various destinations. Close contact should be established with everyone within today, because such a situation can be overcome through communication.
Second, the soccer stadium in Durres should open and be made available to the citizens. As many as 700 beds have been already made available and we should also explore ways to provide transport to the citizens.
The Construction Institute has already started the damage assessment process, while the Minister of Infrastructure is establishing contacts with experts of the construction companies. The army engineers and experts should also help in this process. It is indispensable to coordinate joint efforts and each structure do their part in order to properly identify all damaged buildings and homes and look into the buildings’ structures for potential damages.
The Internal problems are an issue, but they are a much simpler problem than what people need to hear today is how safe the building is, how safe is the house where their children will sleep. This must be done today.
It is very important that we define task and each of us do their best to cope with the situation. A team os social workers and psychologists should become operational to help people overcome these difficult moments. The technical assessment and verification process should be coordinated with the Institute of Construction.
What unintentionally and accidentally was recently transformed into a pilot project in the villages of Korça and Erseka – which I hope is working properly to make sure that they completely destroyed homes are rebuilt from scratch ahead of the rainy season – should serve as an example and experience in taking another more structured steps given the area’s expanse as it is no longer about several flattened houses in some small villages, but about apartment buildings and homes in a much bigger area.
What I would like to see this afternoon is the map of who is doing what. For example, I would like to know who is the individual tasked with dealing with people and who is tasked with dealing with infrastructure. This should be best coordinated, while the Prefect, the head of the civil emergencies, and someone from the Institute of Construction should all work together to take responsibility over each team. If we are to draw such a map today, then everything will go well.
The damages should be identified carefully and compensation should be provided for all damaged buildings, but we should also make sure that no speculators take advantage as always has been the case and no confusion is created between various inspection teams. Unified inspections and verification should be carried out, I mean that the teams from local government, the prefectures, civil emergencies directorate and social service should work together just like fighting a battle. You should identify today every damaged building. Therefore, solidarity from other prefects is needed, as they possess the most valuable asset, that is their experience and the required training to contact people.
To conclude, the process includes also identification of the interior damages. Utmost care and rigorousness is required in this process in order to avoid speculations. The affected families should know for sure they won’t be forgotten, but we first need to make an accurate assessment starting tomorrow, so that we can move to the next stage once the affected families are relieved of this heavy burden on their minds and shoulders and recover from anxiety, while we complete the initial identification of the structural damages.
Of course, the map of damages needs continued updating, because has been calm enough to call us and tell he has been damaged materially and somebody else has been in distress and may come to terms later. So that the number of affected families may grow, but we should make sure that no speculators take advantage of this. That’s why rigorous and accurate inspections and verifications on the ground are needed.
It is important that the Ministry of Defence is provided with accurate information on the number of tents needed to shelter people. We have identified the spots where people tend to go most and we are ready to do a lot more than this. No unclear situations should prevail starting tomorrow. The soccer stadium in Durres should turn into a hosting centre and psychologists should be employed to help people.
The yesterday’s very good work should be much better today, since tension has now been reduced compared to the panic that overcame everybody when tremors took place and panic management is the most difficult task. This initial stage is over and on the other hand it is important to explain that not every crack to the walls is dangerous. The government’s building has suffered cracks, yet they pose no threat to the structure. The earliest symptoms of a haemorrhage are some bruises on the skin. The same happens with the plaster in the corner between the wall and the ceiling – I am not pretending to be a scientist but I have been told so – and these simple and non-scientific aspects should be explained to the people. They should not worry about the cracks. In the case of cracks to the apartment buildings, experts should look into the seismic gap between them. For example, a wide open crack is found between the central government’s building and the former Ministry of Finance building. That crack is the seismic gap that has worked as it has minimized shocks and as such that crack poses no threat to the building’s structure. However, this doesn’t absolutely mean this is the case in every building that have suffered such cracks. It may happen that cracks have affected the buildings’ structure and in this case we should act to prevent any potential risk. What people should be told is that there is no eminent danger today. All these aspects should be explained carefully and patiently, just like I am trying to do here, communicating with people calmly in the position of an informed individual. Majority of you are informed people, but not engineers. But no engineers are needed in this stage of communication. The engineers will be deployed to inspect and verify every damaged house and the apartment buildings in particular. A complete assessment file on the damages should be compiled and then be forwarded to the civil emergencies to kick off the rehabilitation phase.
Our works is focused on Durres, which is closer to the earthquake’s epicentre, but without leaving Tirana behind. We should assist every affected family in every house and apartment building. This is the plan. Meanwhile, the army experience in deploying troops is a valuable thing. It is crucially important that all institutions work together.
