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Search continues for 7 people missing after landslide in Georgia’s Dariali Gorge

Georgia Materials 19 May 2014 13:38 (UTC +04:00)
Currently, seven people are reported as missing in Georgia's Dariali Gorge, according to a statement from Georgian Council for Security and Crisis Management operating under the country's prime minister.
Search continues for 7 people missing after landslide in Georgia’s Dariali Gorge

Tbilisi, Georgia, May 19

By Nana Kirtzkhalia - Trend:

Currently, seven people are reported as missing in Georgia's Dariali Gorge, according to a statement from Georgian Council for Security and Crisis Management operating under the country's prime minister.

Search and rescue works are underway, however mud flow masses make it difficult to conduct them.

"The work will be carried out in full scale as soon as the flooding water level falls," according to the statement.

A rock mass collapsed in the Dariali Gorge last Saturday, on May 17, blocking the Terek River.

An emergency hotline has been created at the "112" Georgia Emergency and Operative Response Center, which can provide information regarding the searches for missing people.

Unconfirmed information indicates that three trucks remain under the rubble, while a few people are trapped in the diversion tunnel - the site of construction works.

The weather conditions are expected to deteriorate, according to the weather forecasts, complicating the rescue and clearance work.

Meanwhile, Georgian Interior Minister Alexander Chikaidze has arrived at the Devdoraki Valley and inspected the situation on the spot.

Georgian Interior Ministry told Trend on May 19 that the emergency situations department, border police, patrol police and the Regional Development and Infrastructure Ministry are coordinating all the necessary works to change the course of the accumulated water, which prevents clearance and rescue operations in the Dariali Gorge.

Minister Chikaidze is heading the emergency headquarters, established by the order of the Georgian PM in connection with the natural disaster. He is still at the disaster site.

Edited by S.I.

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