Thursday, 17 August 2017
Wildfire flashpoints eliminated: Cabinet meeting gets report on firefighting activities
A regular Cabinet meeting was held today, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of International Economic Integration and Reforms Vache Gabrielyan.
Before discussing the agenda, Deputy Minister of Emergency Situations Davit Karapetyan reported on the firefighting effort and the operative situation in the wake of the recent wildfires fires.
“The firefighting operation in the area surrounding the village of Artavan in Vayots-Dzor Marz was brought to successful completion on August 10. A grassy area of about 15 km on perimeter, 320 hectares of which were forested, burnt down in Vayots-Dzor Marz. A multi-layer trench was dug to exclude the spread of fire.
The major flashpoints of the fire, which broke out on August 12 in Khosrov Forest State Reserve, were extinguished on August 16. The firefighting campaign that lasted for several days was exacerbated due to unfavorable climatic conditions, the mountainous relief, grassy areas dry with a long-standing drought and, to make thongs worse, winds promoting the rapid spread of fire.
According to preliminary data, a vegetable area of 16 km on perimeter burned down in Khosrov State Reserve, 360 hectares of which were forests. In both Khosrov and Artavan, the firefighters were joined by army servicemen, the Special Forces of the Police, the staff of the State Forestry Inspectorate, State Committee for Water Resources, residents of nearby communities and environmentalists. The joint firefighting effort made it possible to significantly prevent the spread of fire. The situation is entirely under control, with follow-up works carried out on a perimeter of 2.5 km and 3 km in depth. The IL-76 airplane of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation continues is creating safety zones and a damp environment to prevent double-leaks.
Whereas the fires have caused heated public discussions, I would like to note that on the one hand, we had not faced such large fires in Armenia for a long time, and therefore the public was not well aware of the difficulties in combating such fires, while on the other hand, the recent achievements of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the conscientious work of our rescuers made people believe that the disaster might be neutralized in a few minutes or hours.
Alas, major wildfires are a serious challenge even for the most developed countries in the world. This is not just for justification. As in every major emergency case, the Ministry of Emergency Situations will conduct in-depth probes into the causes of such fires and will draw on expert findings in order to minimize the risks of such disasters,” the Deputy Minister noted.
“The Ministers of Emergency Situations and Nature Protection are staying away in Vayots-Dzor Marz actively participating in the operation. The issue is kept in the spotlight by the President and the Prime Minister of the Republic. I think that the problem is solved at present as a matter of fact,” Vache Gabrielyan said.
The Government approved the strategic plan for the development of science in Armenia for 2017-2020 and an activities’ timetable. The Strategic Plan provides solutions to the challenges faced in this area and the measures that are relevant to them, as well as the key performance indicators of project implementation efficiency.
The Executive established the procedure and timing for involvement in public works, which will streamline the process of involvement of convicts in public works, the participation of competent authorities and persons in the organization of this process, as well as other relationships relevant to public works.
The meeting next approved the procedure for calculation and settlement of surplus income by International Energy Corporation and Electric Networks of Armenia CJSC as generated from the sale of electricity exceeding the established quota of 170 million cubic meters of water released from Lake Sevan in 2017.
By the Cabinet’s decision, the working day of September 18 will be substituted with the Saturday of September 23, allowing citizens to commemorate the Khachverats Memorial Day on September 17 and visit the graves of their dead.
The Government decided to appoint Samvel Amirkhanyan Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies.
