Explosion disaster in Gërdec

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US soldiers investigate the scene of the accident on April 8, 2008

The Gërdec explosion was a tragic accident that occurred on March 15, 2008 at 12:05 pm local time in an ammunition dump north-west of the central Albanian village of Gërdec . 26 people died during the explosions that lasted 15 kilometers west of Tirana . More than 300 people were injured and over 2,300 buildings were damaged or destroyed.

course

In an ammunition store near Gërdec, the Alb-Demil company had old ammunition dismantled on behalf of the Albanian army . According to the media, the physically demanding work was done by men, women, young people and some children. The workers were barely trained in this dangerous work. Probably due to carelessness, explosives lying around ignited. At 12:05 p.m. local time on March 15, 2008, a chain reaction of explosions was triggered that lasted until 2:00 a.m. the next night. They were heard for several tens of kilometers.

consequences

Memorial to the victims of the Gërdec explosion

26 people died at the scene of the accident or as a result of their injuries in hospitals. Another 300 people were slightly to seriously injured. The two nearby villages were completely destroyed and the area with around 4,000 inhabitants had to be evacuated, a state of emergency was declared in the affected zone . The 4000 people received accommodation in hotels and tent camps. The area is littered with fragments and duds . The ammunition produced in China and the Soviet Union , which was dismantled there by unskilled workers from the surrounding villages without any safety measures, came from stocks created during the communist era and some were more than 40 years old.

On the nearby Tirana – Durrës motorway , car windows shattered due to the enormous pressure wave. The resulting cloud of fire rose to a height of several hundred meters.

According to government data, 2,306 buildings were damaged, of which 318 were completely destroyed.

The then Defense Minister Fatmir Mediu ( PR ) resigned shortly afterwards on March 17, 2008. Three days after the accident, the government declared a national day of mourning; Flags were waved at half-mast and there were funeral procession in many cities, but also demonstrations against the government, led mainly by the opposition socialists .

The judicial process surrounding responsibility for the disaster lasted over three years. As the main culprit for the disaster were from the public prosecutor of entrepreneurs Mihal Delijorgji, Ylli Pinari, a senior Responsible for the Ministry of Defense, and Dritan Minxholi, head of the private ammunition disposal accused. On November 1, 2011 a first judgment was made. The three main defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment. On March 12, 2012, their sentences were reduced to 18 and 10 years respectively. A total of 19 people were convicted.

Alb-Demil

The dismantling of different types of ammunition, which in Albania mainly came from the communist era , was carried out by the Alb-Demil company. Alb-Demil was a subsidiary of the US-American Southern Ammunition Co. , based in Loris, South Carolina . In 2006 the company was commissioned by the Albanian Ministry of Defense to dismantle over 10,000 tons of ammunition. In this SALW -Munitionen repacked and the Afghan National Army passed.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Albanien.ch: Severe explosion in ammunition depot
  2. ↑ n-tv (March 17, 2008): Trümmerfeld Gerdec - Hope for Survivors ( Memento from September 9, 2012 in the web archive archive.today )
  3. ^ Albania's weak institutions. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung . April 30, 2008, accessed October 18, 2011 .
  4. ↑ castle përjetë Pinarit, Delijorgjit e Minxholit (life sentence for Pinari, Delijorgji and Minxholi). In: Top Channel . November 1, 2011, accessed November 1, 2011 (Albanian).
  5. ↑ Llazar Semini: Albanian Officials jailed over deadly blast. In: Associated Press. March 12, 2012, accessed September 5, 2012 .

Coordinates: 41 ° 24 ′ 18 ″  N , 19 ° 38 ′ 3 ″  E