ArmInfo.Today, on December 7, an extraordinary exit session of the government, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Spitak earthquake, started in the Gyumri city of Shirak region of Armenia.
Before the meeting, a stamp cancellation ceremony was held in the presence of Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, dedicated to the tragedy of 30 years ago. There are three issues in the agenda of the Cabinet meeting. Before moving to the main agenda, the Acting Prime Minister offered to honor the memory of earthquake victims with a minute of silence.
Earlier, it was reported that on December 7, on the day of the 30th anniversary of the Spitak earthquake, the "My step" bloc would not be campaigning, representatives of the block would visit the cities affected by the earthquake - Gyumri, Spitak and Vanadzor. The "My step"bloc, headed by Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, organizes the procession and lighting of candles, timed to the 30th anniversary of the Spitak earthquake. The procession starts on December 7, at 7:00pm, from the ''Davitashen'' Bridge and ends at the ''Kiev'' Bridge. ''My step'' "calls on all political parties and blocs to show unity and join the event in memory of the victims of the terrible earthquake.
December 7, 1988 at 11 hours 41 minutes local time in Armenia a catastrophic earthquake occurred. A series of aftershocks in 30 seconds almost destroyed the city of Spitak and caused severe destruction to the cities of Leninakan (now Gyumri), Kirovakan (now Vanadzor) and Stepanavan. According to specialists, during the Spitak earthquake in the zone of rupture of the earth's crust, energy equivalent to the explosion of ten atomic bombs was released, each of which was similar to the one dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. The wave caused by the earthquake circled the Earth and was registered by scientific laboratories in Europe, Asia, America and Australia. The earthquake, according to official data, killed 25 thousand people, 140 thousand became disabled, and 514 thousand people lost their homes. The earthquake damaged about 40% of the industrial potential of the republic