New York: A United Nations team is carrying out a rapid evaluation this weekend of the situation in Albania in the aftermath of deadly explosions, which forced thousands of people to evacuate Gerdec.
The seven-member team of the UN Disaster and Assessment Coordination (UNDAC), which arrived in Tirana, earlier this week, is reviewing the situation in Albania, where a series of explosions at a military ammunition depot have killed 21 people.
Albania has sought UN help to identify priority needs and coordinate their response to the explosions, which occurred on March 15 during an ongoing programme to destroy old military ordnance at a depot in the village of Gerdec.
Government figures indicate that 4,000 people have had to be evacuated from a wide area around Gerdec, which is located about 15 kilometers west of Tirana.
As of last Thursday, 408 homes were reported to have been destroyed and over 3,700 others were heavily or partially damaged.
The situation is complicated by the thousands of artillery shells, mortar shells, grenades and small arms ammunition that now litter the area for up to five kilometers around the depot.
