BBC News
Dec 10 2004

1988: Death toll rises in Armenian earthquake

Up to 45,000 people have died and a further 500,000 are homeless
after the devastating earthquake which ripped through Armenia,
official figures revealed today.

Rescue work is currently still concentrating on finding any
survivors, but hope is waning in Armenia which borders Turkey and
Azerbaijan.

The Soviet Union declared today a national day of mourning as the
death toll rose and President Gorbachev toured the cities devastated
by the earthquake.

It measured 6.9 on the Richter scale and affected an area 80
kilometres in diameter.

Spitak, a town of 25,000 inhabitants, has been completely destroyed
and cannot be rebuilt – a new city will have to be built over the
wreckage.

Devastating consequences

The city of Leninakan, with 290,000 inhabitants, and the towns of
Stepanavan and Kirovakan in the northern area of Armenia, were also
hit by the earthquake.

It struck three days ago at 1141 local time when children were at
school and most people at work.

With most of Armenia covered in high-rise buildings the consequences
have been devastating.

The scale of the destruction has brought criticism the infrastructure
was substandard, prompting Soviet authorities to pledge Spitak will
be rebuilt with blocks no more than five storeys high.

Medical Aid

The disaster has led to an unprecedented level of openness by the
Soviet authorities as they struggle to cope with the devastation.

The Soviet Union has made an appeal for medical aid requesting, in
particular, blood transfusion equipment and dialysis machines.

America is sending medical aid and sniffer dogs capable of detecting
survivors.

Dogs sent by France alerted aid workers to 60 people buried alive
under the rubble yesterday.

India has sent clothes and blankets while Britain is transporting
excavating equipment

Five tonnes of clothes have already been collected by Aid Armenia
based in Britain.

In Context
The final number of people who died reached 25,000.
The former Soviet Union came under heavy criticism for failing to
co-ordinate rescue work and acting promptly – revealing it had no
contingency plans for any disasters.

Twelve thousand families remain displaced as a result of the
earthquake after new cities, started by Moscow in 1989, have remained
half-built.

A project by the Urban Institute, policy researchers, along with its
partners, the Institute for Urban Economics in Moscow and the
American University of Armenia, is underway to resolve this.

The goal is to provide permanent housing to those still displaced by
the earthquake while restoring the original city centres.

Watch/Listen
The earthquake measured 6.9 on the Richter scale

BBC News report on the British response to the tragedy

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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress