The Minister of Emergency Situations has issued directives for the prevention of forest fires.

20-07-2026 14:22 Press release

Minister of Emergency Situations Arpine Sargsyan summarized the work done by the Rescue Service in the first half of 2026 on July 16 in the Tavush region.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations reports that Tavush Governor Hayk Ghalaumyan, Deputy Minister of Emergency Situations and Director of the Rescue Service Aram Ghazaryan, Head of the Environmental Ministry's Eco-Inspection Service Vladimir Kirakosyan, rescuers, and employees of the Eco-Inspection Services participated.

Welcoming the attendees, Arpine Sargsyan emphasized that effective inter-agency cooperation is crucial for managing emergencies, eliminating their consequences, and ensuring rapid response.

Hayk Saghatelyan, Head of the Tavush Regional Rescue Department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, reported that during the reporting period, 471 calls were recorded in the subdivisions of the regional rescue department, of which 134 were of a technogenic nature, and 30 were natural and other incidents. The number of fatalities due to emergencies has decreased by 50, and the number of injured has decreased by 11.5 percent. A total of 113 fires were recorded, of which 49 occurred in areas with vegetation and grass cover; one fire incident was recorded in a forested area.

Expressing gratitude for the work done, Arpine Sargsyan instructed to activate cooperation with local self-government bodies to align disaster risk management plans with the current situation and make them more realistic.

The minister instructed to enhance awareness-raising activities in cooperation with supervisory inspection bodies, paying special attention to combating illegal logging.

Issues regarding the prevention of forest fires, river flooding, improvement of forest roads, and cleaning accumulated debris were discussed. The assessment of damages caused by hail and inter-agency cooperation in this regard were also subjects of discussion.

The importance of conducting explanatory work among the population regarding the observance of fire safety rules during agricultural activities, particularly during haymaking, was also emphasized.

Tavush Governor Hayk Ghalaumyan presented the work done on river cleaning and the strengthening of coastal protection structures. He noted that the existing risks require continuous and systematic efforts, especially in the direction of preventing forest fires, considering that Tavush is one of the most forested regions.

Aram Ghazaryan, Deputy Minister of Emergency Situations and Director of the Rescue Service, mentioned that employees of the Rescue Service and Eco-Inspection Service have jointly conducted constant monitoring of fire-prone areas in the forested and recreational zones of Tavush, and meetings have been held in communities to coordinate fire prevention actions.

According to Vladimir Kirakosyan, Head of the Eco-Inspection Service, although the service has recently been established in Tavush, there is already effective cooperation with the Rescue Service.

Minister of Emergency Situations Arpine Sargsyan emphasized the importance of inter-agency cooperation, highlighting that it is necessary to hold such meetings regularly from the perspective of identifying and solving problems.

* This text was automatically translated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Noyan Tapan | Press release