Flooding of river Nenska cuts Tchuberi village of Mestia from rest of Georgia [VIDEO]
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A sudden flooding of the river Nenska in the village of Tchuberi in Svaneti region has cut the village off from the rest of Georgia, as all five bridges have been destroyed, infrastructure has been heavily damaged and many of the houses are in water.
The village has no electricity and there is no mobile connection, Gvantsa Japaridze, a local official told the Netgazeti.ge.
Video: Khatuna Chkhetiani/Facebook.
She says it is very complicated for the emergency service staff to work at the scene due to the absence of bridges and the heavily damaged infrastructure.
Fortunately, no deaths have been reported yet,” Japaridze said.
Nino Vibliani, Tchuberi governor says that a cliff collapsed in the village which caused the raging mountain torrent.
The damage is huge,” she says.
Some media outlets wrote that the reason behind the disaster may be the construction of the Nenskra Hydro Power Plant in the village.
However, the company dismissed the statements and claimed that no construction works have been conducted since the year started.
"This year we have been only engaged with the rehabilitation of existing roads and bridges. Moreover, the disaster took place five kilometers far from the construction site,” the company Nenskta Hydro stated.
Local officials say that the central part of the village is particularly damaged as the river cuts the village in two.
They say that the authorities managed to timely evacuate the local population.
The head of the Emergency Situation Management Service Giorgi Mgebrishvili will arrive at the scene shortly, the Emergency Service press office says.
Travellers wanting to enjoy Georgia’s mountainous regions this summer can soon enjoy the benefits of a direct flight that departs from a village near the capital city and travels directly to Mestia.
Georgia is striving to fortify energy security in the country and improve its economy by building the largest hydro power plant in the recent history of independent Georgia - the Nenskra Hydro-Electric Power Plant (HPP).
Today construction of the biggest HPP since Georgia gained independence, Nenskra HPP in western mountainous Svaneti region, officially started.
Italian industrial group Salini Impregilo is being offered the chance to handle a hydroelectric project in Georgia and contribute in developing the energy sector in the country.
The Georgian Minister for Refugees Sozar Subari has stated that 21 houses and the local infrastructure have been heavily damaged in the village of Tchuberi in Mestia, on the second day of flooding of the river Nenskra.
In about three years early warning systems will be installed throughout Georgia, enabling the population to receive relevant and timely information in a systematic way prior to disasters in order to make informed decisions and take action.
The President of Georgia, as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the country, has issued a decree allowing the emergency response group to use the Georgian military forces to deal with the current flooding and landslide disaster in Mestia municipality.
Powerful rain has resulted in the flooding of houses and streets in the Gardabani, Gori, Signagi and Lagodekhi municipalities last night.
In order to prevent severe consequences of flooding in the village of Tchuberi, Svaneti, the National Environmental Agency of Georgia has installed hydrometeorological measuring devices on the Nenskra River.
A strong wind has broken trees, damaged cars and buildings in western Georgia including Imereti, Guria and Samegrelo regions last night.
After more than two years of investigation, the Nenskra hydropower plant (HPP) project, planned for the upper Svaneti region of Georgia, has been found non-compliant with the environmental and social policies of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB), announces Georgian non-governmental organisation.