“Every day the Ministry of Emergency Situations delivers bread”: Advisor to the Syunik Governor

To make the roads in Syunik passable, the regional administration, the deputy governor, and the urban planning department have coordinated efforts for road clearance. This was stated by Armine Avagyan, advisor to the Syunik Governor, while discussing the issues caused by weather conditions in the region.

On Friday, the Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan wrote on his Facebook page that people in the villages of Goris, Bardzravan, Shurnukh, and Vorotan, as well as in the rural areas of Kapan including Jakatun, Shikahogh, Srashen, Nerkhin Hand, Tsav, and Shishkert are facing isolation and humanitarian problems, especially due to weather conditions.

According to Avagyan, as of 12:37 PM, the roads in Goris are passable, but the situation may change at any moment due to the blizzard. “The roads are constantly being cleared, but occasionally they are closed due to the snowstorm. It's not true that nothing is being done; rather, the road segment between Shinhuhair and Tatev is periodically blocked by the snow. At this moment [12:37 PM], those roads are specifically passable. Bardzravan, Shurnukh, Vorotan, and the regional administration are cooperating with the Ministry of Emergency Situations, which has delivered bread every day; 280 loaves are delivered daily to these three villages. In the villages of Tsav under the Kapan district, there is no bread issue because there is a bakery in Tsav that supplies to Jakatun, Verin Hand, Srashen, and Shikahogh villages,” said the advisor to the Syunik Governor.

She emphasized that if the road is difficult to pass for emergency aid, the Ministry of Emergency Situations is working on it. “Today, the Ministry of Emergency Situations is transferring a patient from Bardzravan. By coordinating with schools, a normal educational process will be organized, and teachers will be able to travel. The question also pertains to the weather conditions. In other words, road builders and operating companies are clearing the roads, but it is unpredictable. The Goris area has such climatic conditions that at any moment the road can be blocked due to severe blizzards; the same happens on the interstate highway. The roads are cleared, made passable, and are serviced regularly, with around-the-clock monitoring on the roads. It is not snowing; the weather is clear, but there are occasional blizzards on these roads, and that is the issue,” concluded Armine Avagyan.