The Armenian government is seeking help from foreign states and international agencies to help rebuild northern regions devastated by flooding.
Rivers in the Tavush and Lori provinces burst their banks in late May, killing four people and causing extensive property damage. The floods, the worst in decades, submerged towns and villages and destroyed roads and bridges. The government declared about a dozen settlements disaster zones and allocated 300 million drams ($775,000) for emergency relief.
“The scale of the disaster is huge,” said Gnel Sanosyan, minister of territorial administration and infrastructure, at a cabinet meeting in Yerevan. Sanosyan, who heads the government task force dealing with the recovery effort, said officials were still assessing the total material damage, with at least 20 bridges either completely or partially destroyed.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stressed the need for international assistance, particularly in rebuilding bridges. “I think we should ask our [international] partners to provide concrete assistance, especially in the field of bridge construction,” he said.
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan noted that some international partners had already expressed willingness to help. “We need to clarify as soon as possible” how international assistance can be most effectively deployed, Mirzoyan urged, pressing for detailed proposals from Sanosyan’s ministry.
Two of the destroyed bridges connected the town of Akhtala and six nearby villages to the rest of the country, leaving these communities largely isolated. Rescuers have been delivering food and essentials through a local forest.
Significant damage was also reported to the two national roads leading to Armenia’s main border crossing with Georgia. Sanosyan noted that emergency repairs have been made, but the roads nevertheless are barely passable at present. The M6 motorway, which runs parallel to Armenia’s only rail link with Georgia, was particularly hard hit: more than two kilometers of track were washed away.
Russian Railways, which manages Armenia’s rail network, has pledged to quickly rebuild the damaged sections. In response to the crisis, the government called for volunteers to help with cleanup efforts.
“There seems to be no shortage of construction equipment, but in some areas only manual labor is possible,” Sanosyan told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service, stressing the need for hundreds of volunteers. Education Minister Zhanna Andreasyan called on more university students to join the clean-up effort, noting that many have already done so.
The government’s appeals have drawn criticism from some opposition supporters, who have questioned the lack of deployment of police and internal troops to flooded areas, noting that many security forces remain in Yerevan amid ongoing anti-government protests.
Meanwhile, individuals and groups have been signing up to help.
