Emergency Minister Discusses Search for Missing Citizen

The Minister of Emergency Situations of Armenia, Armen Pambukhchyan, made a post on his Facebook page regarding the ongoing search operations at the Surmalu trade center.

"The search operations continue in the most challenging, epicentral area to locate the missing citizen," he wrote.

Recall that on August 14, at 1:23 PM, the National Center for Crisis Management received a call reporting an explosion at the Surmalu trade center located at 15 Arshakunyan St. in Yerevan, which resulted in a fire and a partial collapse of the three-story building. The fire was isolated on August 16 at 2:38 PM and was extinguished by 5:49 PM.

According to preliminary information, the area for firefighting and rescue operations covers about 1 hectare. Most of the three-story building (2889 sq. m) has collapsed, along with several pavilions in the surrounding area.

As a result of the search and rescue operations, the bodies of 16 citizens have been discovered. A total of 63 citizens have been admitted to Yerevan hospitals; 3 are still receiving treatment, while the rest have been discharged after receiving appropriate medical care.

Rescuers have managed to pull out 10 injured individuals from the rubble.

According to calls received on the "911" hotline, the following citizens may be considered missing in the area of the Surmalu trade center:

1. Gagik Karlen Karapetyan, born in 1959.
2. Vanik Khachiki Amirxanayan, born in 1967.