At the end of an extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers, Deputy Prime Minister Niko Peleshi and Ministers Edmond Panariti and Saimir Tahiri, released a statement to the media to inform about the situation in flooded areas as a result of rainfall in the south of the country:
Prime Minister Niko Peleshi:
Hello!
Today, on the second day of the flood caused by the heavy rainfall in the districts of Berat, Fier, Elbasan, Gjirokastra and Vlora, the government convened to make an assessment of the measures taken so far to address this civil emergency, and to discuss further steps and measures in the coming days.
We went through a critical situation, but obviously this situation is not over. I would like to inform citizens that new precipitations are expected in the coming days. I also want to assure citizens of all affected areas that emergency staffs have been created and they are ready. Four days ago, the Minister of Interior, who will provide more details on the current situation and the measures taken, ordered the launch of the Civil Emergency Headquarters at the Prefectures in 12 regions of the country, which are on standby for any emergency. For this reason we have been able to afford this critical situation, completely avoiding damages on people, and also many other damages among thousands of livestock, etc. Of course, there are damages caused by this situation.
I want to emphasize that the operation has been comprehensive, all emergency structures have been totally responsive, ranging from the police, special units, civil emergencies, civil emergency volunteering centres, the Armed Forces, hospitals and the entire strategic network of electricity and water supply in order to face of this emergency.
Today, I also want to take this opportunity to communicate with the public, to call on all citizens to cooperate with emergency structures, support and obey the operation, whether by leaving their homes or by not returning there until they are notified by the structures of civil emergency that the danger is over.
Also, since the early hours this morning, we contacted through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Integration our partners, the European Union, the Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, and the Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy. We informed them on the recent flood situation, and asked for their support. We informed them on our current situation, and we will use this opportunity, take advantage of this channel support, which operates in two stages: the first stage with a first aid and then, depending on the damage caused and reports to be generated by the structures of civil emergencies, further support is planned.
Let’s hope that the worst has passed, but still there is no guarantee. Other precipitations are expected in the coming days, on Wednesday, but we assure you that the whole network is working 24 a day to face this emergency without major damages.
Now the Minister of Agriculture who has been on the ground and the Minister of Interior will inform you about the measures taken so far, about warnings and call to collaborate, and about ongoing measures to cope with this civil emergency.
Minister of Agriculture Edmond Panariti:
As Deputy Prime Minister said, the Ministry of Agriculture has been closely following with specific responsibility the functionality of waterworks and pumps. This network has been operating with full efficiency. All pumping stations have been ready, have worked and have been systematically supplied with power. This way the water has withdrawn from plots, especially in those areas where we the rivers didn’t overflow the banks, such as the Lushnja district, soils have been drained and the water removed.
Of course we have had an emergency situation, with the overflow of rivers such as Vjosa, which has had an historical flow. Such flows have not been registered since 1964, as a result of exceptional rainfall within a short timeframe. In the areas affected by rivers overflow, we have had as a main priority the evacuation of people and livestock, and we have done this in cooperation and in complete synchrony with the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence.
We have done our best to evacuate on time from flooded areas, people first and then livestock. So we tried to minimize the damage to livestock, which, of course, we have re-registered and have under our care.
On the other hand, it is our immediate interest the evacuation of water from agricultural fields through ongoing work of pumping stations, to withdraw water in order to have the least possible damage on cultivated lands.
However, the situation is difficult and exacerbated, as the Deputy Prime Minister said, also because meteorological agencies have warned that in the coming days we will have a worse weather condition, with rainfalls that will continue until the end of the week.
Therefore, Civil Emergency Headquarters in all districts will be on alert, in cooperation with all the structures that are integral to these districts, starting from the Drainage Boards, Departments of Agriculture, prefects, Deputy Prefects, the structures of Ministries of Defence and Order, which will work in complete harmony and synchrony, to cope with any emergency situation that may arise.
The situation will be constantly monitored, day and night, in order to minimize and successfully deal with the damage caused by this flood.
Thank you!
Minister of Interior Saimir Tahiri:
I want to inform you that after receiving notification from the Regional Centre of Weather Forecast, four days ago, on this particularly critical situation caused by rainfall not only in Albania but also in the entire region, the Emergency Headquarters regional emergency headquarters were immediately launched under the direction of mayors, attended by all state agencies that have a role and responsibility to deal with civil emergencies, in every area of Albania.
As you all know, several counties in the south of the country are in a critical situation because of the flooding, with thousands of acres in certain areas, making the situation for people, livestock and also properties very difficult.
Civil emergency staffs have been on full alert, so I want to take this opportunity to thank the employees of the State Police, civil emergency workers, armed forces, civil emergency volunteer centres and all those who are intensively engaged in our absolute priority in such a situation. The first step was of course to avoid fatal consequences for human life, serious consequences for human health and of course then, for the livestock and property.
Natural disasters are hardly dealt with by well-established structures, leaving aside here the fact that the structure of civil emergency response in the country has sufficient capacity, but not to face events such as those that occurred. As Minister Panariti mentioned earlier, the unpredictable quantity of river flows, and without historical precedents, make it difficult for any structure to deal with their consequences.
As we speak, there are thousands of hectares of land under water. There are hundreds of families who have water in their yards and houses. Civil emergency forces, the State Police, the Armed Forces have evacuated over 300 families. We made it possible, especially during the night and early hours of yesterday, the evacuation of several families and specifically, some residents with health problems, in addition to these emergency conditions. And also, as we speak, we have managed to send first aid with food and all the necessary equipment in reception centres or in places to meet the basic needs of citizens affected by flood.
The situation is critical. This is a civil emergency that finds all structures and institutions on full alert and prepared to face any situation and any consequence that may bring the emergence of rivers overflow or floods in these areas.
As Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Panariti said the situation may not change, if rainfall continues. So for that reason, I would like to join the call of my colleagues and ask every citizen to show understanding with the Order Forces, the Armed Forces, in cases of evacuation due to flooding, or their failure to return in areas that are potentially endangered by flood.
State Police is ready in these areas to ensure order and to avoid any kind of consequence or criminal event. The same, the entire structure of the emergency is ready to cope with the toughest consequences if, according to the weather forecast, the situation deteriorates.
I take this opportunity once again to seek the understanding of citizens, as no institution can face the consequences of a civil emergency, or a large-scale flood, if citizens do not cooperate. In this case, civil emergency forces had to come back and forth several times in the same dwelling to convince residents and sometimes evacuation was forced for some people who did not want to leave their homes for reasons which are also understandable. It is our utmost priority the protection of life, the preservation of health and protection of livestock and property.
Thank you!
