Emergency Situation: Over 300 Vehicles Stranded Due to Black Ice on the Road

For over 3 hours, an emergency situation has arisen on the Vanadzor-Stepanavan highway in the Stepanavan administrative region. According to photojournalist Gagik Shamshyan from the scene, the section of the road from Vanadzor to the Stepanavan tunnel is clear and traffic is passable. However, the section of the road from the Stepanavan tunnel to Tashir, covering about 20 kilometers, is completely covered with black ice, leaving over 300 vehicles unable to move.

A cargo truck has caused a blockage, and citizens are now trying to move the truck with the help of the traffic police's 5th company of the 2nd battalion, led by Battalion Commander Garik Martirosyan. This several-kilometer stretch of road has not been maintained at all, and the work was supposed to be done by the “Argishti” LLC.

In an interview with the photojournalist, citizens expressed their frustration, stating, “This road has been in a deplorable condition for the past 4-5 days. We have alerted everyone, but to no avail. They even blame us, asking who told us to travel this road. We did not expect such absurd responses. If the company responsible for the road had carried out snow removal and cleared the black ice on time, by spreading salt and sand, we are confident the road would have become passable. Now we are faced with a broken situation. Where are the officials from the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures, the Road Department, and the Lori Region administration? They only seem to make grand announcements, take photos on 2-3 decent roads to share on Facebook, claiming to have done their job. They should have been here to witness the miserable state of affairs.

During these past 4 days, only the firefighting and rescue teams from the Ministry of Emergency Situations in Stepanavan and Kirovakan, along with police officers, have come to help us. The boys from the traffic police were breaking the ice on the road with shovels. The only consolation is that, as a result of all this, there have been no casualties. But at least now, the government should learn from this.”