400,000 lei collected in aid for victims of Soroca building explosion

About MDL 400,000 have been collected on the account opened by Soroca public authorities to aid the victims of the October 27 explosion, said the Minister of Local Public Administration Valentin Guznac at a meeting of the Government Commission for Emergencies on Thursday. According to the minister, the sum of MDL 35,000 was transferred by 5 central public institutions from the one-day’s pay of the public servants. 9 other institutions are in the process of transferring the money and other 11 haven’t transferred any sums yet. Valentin Guznac pointed out that the most serious problem faced by the victims of the explosion is the same – lack of housing. The people are ready to wait for help from the state as long as it takes, but are totally against the construction of a new block on the site of the destroyed one. The work on the demolition of the old block has been already finished. Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev mentioned that a working group proposed several solutions to provide the people with housing. The Government will participate in solving this problem, even though in such situation the legislation in force places the responsibility on the shoulders of the local authorities. The Prime Minister also proposed that the personnel of the Civil Protection and Emergency Service of the Interior Ministry, who participated actively in the relief works, should be advanced in rank and awarded. Four civilians died in the explosion that occurred in an apartment building in Soroca. One firefighter died during rescue works, while another was hospitalised in a serious condition.