By Eva Sahakyan

YEREVAN, August 11–On August 4 fire broke out in the Georgian region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. Firemen have been fighting for about a week but they did not manage to put it out yet.

Hundreds of lifesavers, volunteers, the department of Emergency Situations and the Georgian Ministry of Defense have also joined the fire-fighting brigades.

According the Georgian Minister of Environment and Natural Resources George Khachidze the difficulties that firefighters face are caused by strong winds and high temperatures.

David Rstakian, the co-chairman of the Virk political party said that it’s still difficult to speak about the fire damage, but according to official data 25 hectares of forest have already burned. He also mentioned that the fire has been contained and now preventive measures are being carried out.

“There are no hazards for the population, but the fire caused serious damages from economic and ecological points of view,”  Khachidze mentioned.

The Georgian Government met in an extraordinary meeting to discuss the fire hazard. According to the data of the authorities the fire might either have been caused by increasing heat (about 38-40 degrees Celsius) or might have been an incendiary fire. Investigations are already ongoing.

Yerevan Report