Azerbaijani President visits Shirvan to meet evacuated residents of flood-hit Sabirabad - PHOTOS

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev visited the country's Shirvan city where he met residents of Sabirabad flooded as a result of the rise of water level in the Kura River, and held an on-site meeting on May 11th.

The President toured temporary camps here. The Head of State was told the evacuated people were provided with food, fresh water and other emergency supplies. The President met the evacuated people and got informed of their problems.

The Sabirabad residents thanked the Head of State for visiting them and for his care and attention. President Ilham Aliyev vowed the people affected by the flood would be given further help and all their problems would be solved.

“Eliminating the results of the natural disaster and solving everyday problems of those affected are the focus of my attention. I have already given necessary instructions and their fulfillment is kept under control.”

The President viewed a medical station, where he was told necessary efforts were underway to control the epidemiological situation at the site. The Head of State was told 176 temporary camps housed nearly 1500 residents of 9 towns in Sabirabad. After touring the camps, the President held an on-site meeting.

Speaking to the meeting, President Ilham Aliyev praised the government`s preventive efforts, saying “if it was not for these measures the scale of the disaster could have been much greater and it could have been more devastating”.

The Head of State said he gave instructions to relevant bodies to strengthen the onshore protection and speed up the work to build dams.

Speakers at the meeting - deputy prime minister Abid Sharifov, emergency situations minister Kamaladdin Heydarov, Chairman of Melioration and Water Industry company Ahmad Ahmadzade, interior minister Ramil Usubov, education minister Misir Mardanov, health minister Ogtay Shiraliyev, president of Azerenerji company Etibar Pirverdiyev and Sabirabad governor Heydar Abbasov - reported on the current situation in the affected areas.

In his closing remarks, President Ilham Aliyev said the water flow in the Kur River was above 1800-1900 cubic meters per second.

“But it was 2400 cubic meters per second when the water level was rising.”

The President once again gave instructions to relevant officials to strengthen efforts towards eliminating the consequences of the disaster and solving problems of the people affected.


/AzerTac/

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