Macedonian Army soldiers with rescue dogs and the residents of the village Shipkovica, are searching for the body of six year old Drita Ameti who is supposed dead in the floods that caught the Tetovo region. The crew is looking for a sixty one year old resident of Lisec who had disappeared after the storm. Last time the man was seen with his cattle on a meadow above the village. His niece is the first victim that died in the disaster. She was found in Golema Rechica. His family claims that he is also somewhere in the ruins of that village which the army searched during the day.
– Chances of finding the body are slim. The entire village has been covered in thick mud, large stones and trees. We are not giving up however. Our relative is here. He is from Lisec. During the storm he had fallen down the slope directly in Golema Rechica, said a relative of the sixty one year old resident of Lisec.
MP Dzevad Ademi who is a resident of Golema Rechica was on the ground today. He said there is another missing person from Poroj which will raise the number of casualties to seven, including the residents of Shipkovica, the girl from Lisec, her grandfather and the missing Drita Ameti.
From the Tetovo police department they say they haven’t received an official claim for the missing person in Poroj. If there is such a case, family members can contact the police.
In Shipkovica, where the storm caused several casualties, the relief crew cleaned up part of the road that passes through the village.
– We are working 24 hours with the help of the Army, the Office for emergency relief and the locals. It will take few weeks before we clean up the entire area where we find lots of debris and earth. Then we need to fix the water system so we can bring back the drinking water supply. It is a relief that the better part of the village has gotten back its electricity- said Arben Alili, President of the Emergency and crisis headquarters of Shipkovica.
The situation is becoming stable in Golema and Mala Rechica. The debris that had covered roads, river banks and sidewalks had been removed with the help of power mechanization. Nearly all agricultural plots had been destroyed in these two villages.
– There are more than 200 hectares. I have around 15 decares planted with strawberries and potato, but everything got swiped. We don’t have anything for this year. We hope that next year we can cultivate the land again- said a farmer in Golema Rechica.
Deputy minister of Agriculture Vancho Kostadinovski, who visited Golema Rechica, promised help for the families who had suffered damages.
– Expert teams will estimate the damages and the agricultural families will be compensated. The herders who lost cattle and feed will receive immediate compensation- said Kostadinovski.
The water has receded from bank of the river Pena in Tetovo. The municipality has employed mechanical equipment to clean up public surfaces of mud and dust that increased the air pollution in the past few days. The recommendation public water not to be drank is still valid until final conclusions from microbiological tests, which are conducted in the Center of public health.
Tetovo is observing two days of sorrow. All of the public events such as Tetovo Cultural Summer have been cancelled.
Z. D.
