Igor Sergeenko is on a working trip to the Vitebsk region
According to Sergey Sadovsky, Chairman of the Ushachi District Executive Committee, a severe hurricane hit the region on July 1. Within just 10 minutes, agricultural and civil facilities, as well as forests, suffered significant damage. In close cooperation with the structures of the regional executive committee, the Ministry of Energy, and the Ministry of Forestry, the main issues were resolved within 24 hours, including clearing roads and restoring electricity and water supply. 5,000 subscribers were disconnected from the power grid. Five teams of power engineers from Borisov also provided assistance. 170 trees were felled in the settlements. Concerned citizens helped the housing and communal services with their removal. 265 people applied to Belgosstrakh for assistance totaling about 130,000 rubles. Approximately 40,000 rubles were allocated from the district executive committee's reserve fund to eliminate the consequences of the hurricane at agricultural and housing and communal services facilities.
The harvesting campaign in the Ushachi district is being hampered by frequent downpours. However, the harvest is proceeding one and a half to two weeks ahead of last year's schedule. Sergey Sadovsky is confident that the harvest will be completed earlier than usual.
As reported by Yuri Lipsky, General Director of the Vitebsk State Forestry Production Association, 258 hectares of forest were affected by the hurricane on July 14 in the northern region. The largest areas are in the Orsha, Ushachi, and Tolochin districts. The consequences of the disaster will be fully eliminated by November 1. Timber is being supplied to woodworking shops, shipped under contracts, and orders from the regional and district executive committees for the cleanup of the hurricane's aftermath are also being fulfilled. New forests will be planted in the cleared areas in the autumn. The Vitebsk State Forestry Production Association is ready to accept assistance in planting new trees from all concerned citizens.
Representatives of the Vitebsk region are helping colleagues in the Gomel region, which was most affected by the hurricane. About 150 people and 40 harvesters are working there. Continuous sanitary felling is to be carried out on almost 1.6 thousand hectares.
Noting the clarity of actions to eliminate the consequences of the hurricane, Igor Sergeenko noted that due to changes in climatic conditions, we must be in constant readiness for prompt response to natural disasters. He emphasized that the work to eliminate the consequences of the hurricane also revealed the best human qualities - people came out to clear debris and helped each other.
Regarding the progress of the harvesting campaign, Igor Sergeenko stated that there are no serious comments on the organization of work. He expressed a wish for higher yields in the Vitebsk region.