Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who is in Armenia’s Lori Province today on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of the great earthquake, lit a candle in the church of Spitak town in memory of the victims of this devastating 1988 quake.

As reported earlier, he also visited Shirakamut and Lernantsk villages today and participated in the unveiling of the bust of the late American Armenian benefactor Kirk Kerkorian in Spitak.

One of the most brutal tragedies in modern Armenian history took place on December 7, 1988. At 11:41am that day, the northern regions of the then Armenian SSR were shaken by a devastating earthquake, whose was epicenter was Spitak. More than 25,000 people were killed, tens of thousands were injured, and hundreds of thousands were left homeless.