Tbilisi flood: Compensation now available to victims

Flood-affected families in Tbilisi can now apply to Tbilisi City Hall to receive compensation for their homes and property lost in the June 13 natural disaster. 

Tbilisi Sakrebulo, the City Assembly, has defined the compensation rules for flood victims. The rules were adopted yesterday with 46 votes in favour and none against.

One of the flood-affected houses at Svanidze St. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.

The compensation rules state flood-affected families have two options: Victims can either ask for a fixed compensation based on the number of members in their family, or ask for a thorough assessment of their lost property and receive an equal amount of compensation.

Flood-affected families were divided into two categories by the Sakrebulo: Those whose houses were destroyed by the natural disaster and the houses were not subject to restoration, and those whose houses were partially destroyed but could be repaired.

Compensation for victims in terms of number of family members has been defined as the following:

• Families with one or two members will receive financial compensation equal to the value of a 45sq km area;
• Three/four member families will be offered financial compensation equal to the value of a 65sq km area;
• Families with five/six members will be given financial compensation equal to the value of 90sq km area; and
• Families with seven or more family members will be offered financial compensation equal to the value of 110 sq km area.

In addition, each family will receive a household package relative to the number of people in their families; A family with 1-2 members will receive 8,000 GEL, a 3-4-member family will get 8,700 GEL, a 5-6-member family will get 9,400 GEL and families with 7 or more members will receive 10,500 GEL.

Deputy Mayor Dimitri Kumsiashvili said Tbilisi City Hall could begin distributing compensation to the flood victims today "if the flood-affected families could pick one of the two offered forms of compensation”.

About 400 people from 80 families in central Tbilisi were forced from their damaged homes and temporarily placed in 10 hotels and houses following the June 13 deadly flash flood in the Georgian capital. The families were being provided with food, first aid, medicine and children’s products.