USAID Assists Albanians Displaced in Accidental Explosions

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American people, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), provided $50,000 to meet the immediate needs of Albanians affected by the accidental munitions explosions at a military facility near the capital city of Tirana. 

On March 15 and 16, a series of explosions at an Albanian military ammunition storage facility in Gerdec, 10 miles southeast of Tirana, killed 21 people and injured 250 others.  According to the Government of Albania (GOA), the accidental explosions destroyed or damaged more than 4,000 houses, numerous public buildings, including schools, and water and power infrastructure.  The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated that the explosions affected approximately 10,000 people, including the 4,000 residents of three nearby villages who fled their homes following the blasts.  The GOA declared a state of emergency for Gerdec and surrounding areas and set up emergency commissions to respond. 

USAID is continuing to monitor the situation and will provide additional assistance should it be necessary.

For more information about USAID's emergency humanitarian assistance programs, please visit: www.usaid.gov/our_work/humanitarian_assistance/disaster_assistance/.

The American people, through the U.S. Agency for International Development, have provided economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide for nearly 50 years.

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