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COUNTING THE COST: ABOUT 70 WITHOUT SHELTER AFTER YEREVAN'S WORST FIRE IN YEARS
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
By Karine Ionesyan
ArmeniaNow
26.11.10
Siranuysh Sakunts says the fire broke out at her home when she tried
to turn the gas cylinder.
Yerevan's worst residential fire in recent memory left about 70
residents looking for shelter, as the Wednesday night blaze is still
being investigated. No deaths or injuries were reported, but the fire
has disrupted the normal course of life for many.
While several of those who lost their property now stay at their
relatives', for many the past 48 hours have proved a catastrophe.
Children do not attend school, while their parents do not go to work.
They say the fire destroyed all their winter clothes.
The Israyelyans pray to God everyday not to send rain, as the only
two rooms of their house that are more or less suitable for staying
would be filled with water because of the damaged roof.
The three-story building constructed at the Koryun Street-Mashtots
Avenue intersection in 2002 is the only of 14 that has been partly
spared by the fire. The rest were burned down in the November 24 blaze.
Siranuysh Sakunts, 50, told ArmeniaNow that the fire broke out at
her home when she tried to turn the gas cylinder on. But officials
say the causes of the fire will be known only in 10 days.
"We couldn't smell gas, I don't know why it happened," Sakunts told
ArmeniaNow, adding that she had lost her two-room apartment and
possessions and still has to pay 200,000 (about $550) for the items
she had bought on installment. She has five members in her family,
of whom two are minors and she is the only breadwinner, receiving a
monthly salary of 55,000 drams (about $150).
All residents say they had items in their houses that they had bought
on credit and that banks have not yet made any offer to extend the
terms of payments.
"We have not had such a case before and don't know what will be.
Perhaps these people will come and write applications [for extension]
and then we'll see," Artsakhbank micro crediting development division
head Armen Hovsepyan told ArmeniaNow.
The Yerevan municipality has not yet made the final estimation of
damage, nor has it discussed a compensation order.
"We now live like hobos. My mother and father stay at a relative's,
my wife and I stay at another's. Till when?" says Gevorg Sargsyan,
35, who repaired his house half a year ago.
Residents also say that they will demand a compensation of the value
of the land and the amount of money they spent on repairs and buying
goods. The estimated price of a square meter of land in downtown
Yerevan is $1,500-$1,500.
Ministry of Emergency Situations spokesman Nikolay Grigoryan told
ArmeniaNow that the latest fire is the largest in Yerevan's recent
history. The last big fire happened in 2008 when the Justice Ministry
building was badly damaged.
From: A. Papazian
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
By Karine Ionesyan
ArmeniaNow
26.11.10
Siranuysh Sakunts says the fire broke out at her home when she tried
to turn the gas cylinder.
Yerevan's worst residential fire in recent memory left about 70
residents looking for shelter, as the Wednesday night blaze is still
being investigated. No deaths or injuries were reported, but the fire
has disrupted the normal course of life for many.
While several of those who lost their property now stay at their
relatives', for many the past 48 hours have proved a catastrophe.
Children do not attend school, while their parents do not go to work.
They say the fire destroyed all their winter clothes.
The Israyelyans pray to God everyday not to send rain, as the only
two rooms of their house that are more or less suitable for staying
would be filled with water because of the damaged roof.
The three-story building constructed at the Koryun Street-Mashtots
Avenue intersection in 2002 is the only of 14 that has been partly
spared by the fire. The rest were burned down in the November 24 blaze.
Siranuysh Sakunts, 50, told ArmeniaNow that the fire broke out at
her home when she tried to turn the gas cylinder on. But officials
say the causes of the fire will be known only in 10 days.
"We couldn't smell gas, I don't know why it happened," Sakunts told
ArmeniaNow, adding that she had lost her two-room apartment and
possessions and still has to pay 200,000 (about $550) for the items
she had bought on installment. She has five members in her family,
of whom two are minors and she is the only breadwinner, receiving a
monthly salary of 55,000 drams (about $150).
All residents say they had items in their houses that they had bought
on credit and that banks have not yet made any offer to extend the
terms of payments.
"We have not had such a case before and don't know what will be.
Perhaps these people will come and write applications [for extension]
and then we'll see," Artsakhbank micro crediting development division
head Armen Hovsepyan told ArmeniaNow.
The Yerevan municipality has not yet made the final estimation of
damage, nor has it discussed a compensation order.
"We now live like hobos. My mother and father stay at a relative's,
my wife and I stay at another's. Till when?" says Gevorg Sargsyan,
35, who repaired his house half a year ago.
Residents also say that they will demand a compensation of the value
of the land and the amount of money they spent on repairs and buying
goods. The estimated price of a square meter of land in downtown
Yerevan is $1,500-$1,500.
Ministry of Emergency Situations spokesman Nikolay Grigoryan told
ArmeniaNow that the latest fire is the largest in Yerevan's recent
history. The last big fire happened in 2008 when the Justice Ministry
building was badly damaged.
From: A. Papazian