YEREVAN. – Last year was unprecedented in the number of emergencies, said Feliks Tsolakyan, the Minister of Emergency Situations of Armenia.

According to him, practically, there has been growth in all types of emergencies in the country. The minister spoke in detail about the fires. Thus, in 2019 there were 10,237 fires registered against 6,500 in 2018. Tsolakyan added with regret that one firefighter was killed and another one was injured last year.

The minister noted that last year there were a large number of forest fires in Armenia, and the bitter experience has shown many problems. Among them Tsolakyan mentioned the lack of roads in the country’s forests. According to him, the cause of forest fires is often the human factor. Tsolakyan emphasized the need for preventive work and, first of all, the creation of roads in the forests of Armenia.

As per the minister, another important issue is that of emergency helicopters, and this issue is being discussed with Russia.