A growing number of quake-affected families are leaving their makeshift tents to move into their newly-built homes in the worst-hit areas by the devastating earthquake just over a year ago.

A total of 90 families in Rrashbull, Durres district, are eligible to housing under the post-earthquake reconstruction program, while construction of 30 more houses is currently underway. Two families in this administrative unit received their house keys by Prime Minister Edi Rama, who, together with the Reconstruction Minister Arben Ahmetaj and Durres Mayor Emiriana Sako, were the first guests to the new houses.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” the family head said as he cordially welcomed the first guests to his new two-bedroom +1 house. “The bricks of the old houses we used to live in previously could be removed with free hand without having to use other tools,” he said telling about his old family home, which was reduced to ruins due to the powerful earthquake. 

The Minister of State for Reconstruction Arben Ahmetaj noted with the completion of the new houses the number of families still living in tents is increasingly decreasing.

“I live today in a much better, stronger, larger and more beautiful house,” the head of the other family benefiting housing under reconstruction programme said. She also thanked Durres Mayor and the head of the administrative unit for the hard work and readiness to help the quake-affected families in the area.

During a conversation with them, PM Rama noted that such visits to the newly-built houses for the quake-affected families aim at conveying the message that work is underway and utmost efforts are being done. “We should visit these areas to show that intense work is underway. Work to repair buildings that have sustained medium damage degree Ds4 also started in Durres,” the government head said. 

Durres Mayor also said that in parallel with the work to repair residential buildings, some 120 single-family homes are also repaired for their structural damages.