Hrachya Papinyan: Damage from the floods will have serious economic consequences

Damage from the floods will have serious economic consequences, Hrachya Papinyan, director of the “Ankyun + 3” TV company, told Alpha News.

As reported earlier, four persons were killed in the floods that occurred in the Lori and Tavush regions.

“As far as I know, one of the victims was a truck driver; the other was not local, he was from Yerevan. This is all the information I currently have about the casualties.

Let me note that the damage from the floods will amount to tens of billions. In the Tavush and Lori regions, 17 bridges were destroyed, and roads for hundreds of kilometers were washed away. Their restoration will be extremely expensive and difficult, and these losses will have economic consequences. Obviously, there will be a problem of unemployment because in the Alaverdi community, many worked in the service sector, including restaurants and shops that were located on the river bank. It turns out that all these people are left without work,” Hrachya Papinyan said.

He said that a number of settlements are still cut off from the outside world, and food is being delivered with the help of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, but in settlements there is a problem with drinking water.

“Various settlements of the Alaverdi community are cut off from the outside world. Today, builders have already begun improving the forest road from Alaverdi so that they can connect Akhtala, Shamlugh, Chochkan, Ayrum, and other settlements with the outside world. Isolated settlements receive essential products through the Ministry of Emergency Situations; fortunately, there is a flour mill and flour reserves. I think that there will be no problems with bread,” Hrachya Papinyan noted.

He also drew attention to the damage caused to the railway.

“The railway also suffered enormous damage; the Akhtala station almost does not exist. Videos taken today with a drone show that the station simply does not exist. There are areas where train tracks hang in the air. I think that at the moment the danger is gone, but the main problem is restoration and the payment of compensation to people,” Hrachya Papinyan concluded.