The committees on surveying damages caused by fires will finish their work within a week

Damascus, (ST) – The Minister of Agriculture, Local Administration and Environment, Eng. Muhammad Hassan Qatna and Engineer Hussein Makhlouf, affirmed that the priority now, after putting out the fires that affected areas of Lattakia, Tartous and Homs governorates, is to assess the damage and compensate the affected, stressing that the damage assessment committees will finish their work within one week only.

Eng. Qatana said in statements to the Syrian TV that a main committee was formed under the chairmanship of the governor in each governorate, in addition to forming a large number of groups at the local level to enumerate the damages, whether to forest sites, houses or fruit trees.

Qatana stated that these committees will start their work this morning, and only one week has been given to complete their work, indicating that the damages tables will be prepared in a nominal manner at the level of each individual or every family to define the damage and the way to compensate it.

He explained that the fires caused damage to forest sites, a large proportion of the land planted with olive trees and vegetables, and a number of greenhouses, pointing out that the high speed of wind last Friday strengthened the fires and caused the loss of 600 hectares in one forest site and also burned large areas of olive trees that should have been harvested by farmers.

Qatana pointed out that the severe blockade imposed by the United States of America and Western countries on Syria has caused an increase in the number of fires due to the lack of necessary mechanisms to deal with the fires and to clean the sides of roads from the remnants of highly inflammable weeds. The ministry is now working with only 30% of its normal capacity

He stressed that the government is currently making great efforts to fix the broken tanks and a forestation with new tanks and mechanisms.

The Minister of Local Administration and Environment, Hussein Makhlouf said that, after extinguishing the fires, the priority goes to compensation for the damage as soon as possible.

The Minister of Electricity, Eng. Ghassan Al-Zamil, affirmed that all the electricity companies in Syria have been instructed to support the companies in Tartous, Homs and Lattakia, indicating that the electrical supply has been restored in Tartous and Homs and that the damages will be assessed later.

Al-Zamil pointed out that the greatest damage was in the Lattakia governorate in Ras Al-Basit and Balorin, and 95 percent of the electrical supply has been returned to it, and that the Qardaha area is the most affected, and electricity will be restored to it at the end of the week.

The Minister of Water Resources, Dr. Tamam Raad, said that 24 sites were affected by the fires in the governorates of Lattakia and Tartous, and that al-Qardaha, Balorain and some sites of Ras Al-Basit are the most affected, indicating that work has been done to repair the damaged lines and water pumps except in the countryside of Qardaha as a result of the power going off.  Re-pumping of water will start again in two days.

Raad pointed out that drinking water is available at a rate of 90 percent, and that areas that suffer from water cuts have been served by tankers as an emergency solution until the water is re-pumped to them.

Raghda Sawas