VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:
Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues,
I have recently discussed the issue of spring flooding with the Minister of Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief, the head of the agency, and we agreed to hold this conference call.
This past winter was one of the coldest in the last 40 years in Russia. Snowfall was 1.5-2 times higher in some regions, and the ice cover on rivers was thicker than usual. Therefore, the rise in water level on rivers may also be significant.
Moreover, some villages and towns are experiencing problems already. I trust that we will discuss this today.
On the whole, flooding threatens 3,029 towns and villages, 315 railway sections, and 492 bridges, of which 35 bridges are high risk. As I mentioned, there was more snow and ice than usual on the majority of the rivers that have the potential to get clogged up. These are in the North-Western District, in the Far East and in Siberia.
Remember that we had to make significant budget allocations more than once to provide relief and repair damage caused by flooding. The situation is already difficult in some towns and villages, but we will not abandon people who are in trouble now or might be tomorrow.
Mr Shoigu, please report on what is being done in the towns and villages that are already in trouble.
We must do more to prevent emergencies, minimise the potential damage from various natural disasters and plan ahead.
I understand that it is difficult to control the elements. We sometimes fail to respond in time, but we must strive to do so.
In any event, we must deploy all the necessary equipment in time, plan for clearing ice jams, protect bridges and other infrastructure, and check whether dams and waterworks are in working order.
Most importantly, we must warn people in advance in potential flooding areas. They have to know what to do in the event of a disaster, and they must have enough time to take the necessary actions to protect themselves and their property.
And of course, regardless of flooding, people must continue to receive their pensions and other social benefits, mail and medical assistance in time. I would like the heads of the aforementioned agencies to bear in mind that there should be no interruptions in their work.
Our success depends on there being proper coordination among all services and at all levels of government. This coordination is ensured by the National Emergency Management Centre of the Ministry of Emergencies, which has up-to-the-minute data and whose decisions must be urgently implemented.
I would like to remind regional and municipal leaders of the importance of coordinating their work closely with the Ministry of Emergencies. You must do your best to avert emergencies caused by spring flooding.
Let's get down to work. Mr Shoigu, please make your report.
Sergei Shoigu: Thank you.
Mr Putin, ladies and gentlemen,
The winter of 2009-2010 was characterized by substantial deviations in flood-forming parameters practically throughout the country. Based on the forecast, we have outlined the following stages of spring flooding:
The first stage (last ten days of March - first ten days of April) will take place in the Southern and North Caucasian Federal Districts and in the south of the Far Eastern Federal District. The second stage of flooding (the second half of April and the whole of May) will occur in the central regions of the Northwestern, Central, Volga, Ural, Siberian and Far Eastern Federal Districts, and the third (May-June) will take place in the northern regions of the Northwestern, Ural, Siberian and Far Eastern Federal Districts, above the 60th parallel.
The flood hazard area includes more than 3,000 towns and villages with a population of over two million, 482 automobile and railway bridges and 804 industrial waste containers.
The unified state emergency warning and response system provides for organizational and technical measures to reduce the risks of spring flooding and increase public preparedness for potential emergencies during this time.
We have completed the planning phase for emergency warning and response measures for flooding in all federal districts. A group consisting of over 300,000 people and over 120 pieces of equipment, including 79 aircrafts and more than 7,500 watercrafts, has been formed. There are also financial and material reserves.
As part of the plan, we have heard from the heads of executive authorities in 25 regions and 36 local governments regarding their preparedness for the upcoming flooding. This work is ongoing.
We are using satellite monitoring to ensure that we are getting reliable information about flood hazard areas. There are 31 stations receiving information from satellites, including those of our ministry and other relevant ministries and departments.
The plan calls for taking images of 1,500 flood hazard areas from 10 satellites.
Since the beginning of March we have launched efforts to divert flood waters. We have detonated 115 areas that are prone to ice jams in the Far Eastern, Siberian and Northwestern Federal Districts; more than 50 square kilometres of ice have been blackened and more than 80 kilometres have been cut.
We have also planned for the structural protection of transportation infrastructure in the Siberian and Southern Federal Districts.
We have organised more than 900 rapid-response groups at the interregional, regional and municipal level to manage implementation of preventive measures and to coordinate joint actions.
At present, 61 rapid-response groups have started work. In accordance with the Government Commission's directive, we have planned for the continuous operation of interdepartmental task groups at the federal, interregional and regional level.
To guarantee that flood prevention measures are implemented, we plan to use airplanes for ice reconnaissance, urgent evacuation from disaster areas, and transporting rescue teams and equipment to flood zones. We have also arranged to use the Defence Ministry's combat aircrafts to unblock ice jams in case of emergency in the Far Eastern and Siberian Federal Districts.
These measures show that we are prepared to respond to flood-related emergencies.
Mr Putin, ladies and gentlemen,
Currently the highest risk of flooding at the regional and federal level exists in Yakutia, Khakassia, Tyva, the Krasnodar Territory and the Irkutsk Region. At the local and municipal level, 59 constituent entities of the Russian Federation are classified as high-risk.
I hope that the measures that have been taken up to this point and that we are planning to take in the next two months will allow us to minimize the damage caused by spring flooding.
Thank you for your attention.
* * *
Vladimir Putin's closing remarks:
Okay. We hope that you will carry out all these measures on time.
Colleagues, we are connected with the entire country now from the Far East to the northwestern regions and Kaliningrad. I'd like to emphasize once again the need to focus on spring flooding.
These meetings are not frequent, but this year this meeting and this discussion are very important for obvious reasons - we had unusual weather and abnormally low temperatures. Let me repeat what you already know - we have had tonnes of snow.
We cannot completely prevent economic losses, but we must do everything we can to minimize them and help people with equipment and other things. Some of them are already facing difficulties or will face difficulties in the near future.
I see that work is now being carried out throughout the country, and I would like to thank the employees of the Emergencies Ministry and municipal and regional leaders for this coordinated effort.
As I've mentioned, health and road workers and social services should also get ready for the flooding. This is a big, complex task. Our headquarters are operating smoothly. We need to get through this period. It may not last very long, but it will be quite intensive. Therefore, we should continue preparing for it at the current pace and try to get through it with minimal losses.
Good luck! I trust that you will all work hard. I'd like you to carry out today's instructions as soon as possible and report back.
Thank you very much. All the best!
