On Monday, June 12, Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov held an operational meeting on the elimination of a major natural fire in Abay region and the provision of necessary support measures to the affected families.

The meeting began with a minute of silence in memory of those killed in the emergency.

Minister for Emergency Situations Syrym Shariphanov reported that in the evening of June 11, because of wind gusts up to 18 meters per second the fire spread southward from the main focus. In particular, there was dense smoke and a bottom fire in the direction of the village of Talitsa. Fire-fighting equipment was quickly deployed to protect the village, and as a result the flames were extinguished.

During the night the fire was extinguished in three directions: south, west and northeast. Thanks to this the main center was almost encircled. Since 06:00 am on June 12, resumed extinguishing. Presently 1530 people, 320 equipment units and 14 helicopters are involved in extinguishing.

The report on the current situation and measures taken was also given by Akim of the region Nurlan Urankhayev.

The Prime Minister stressed that to investigate the causes and eliminate the consequences of emergencies a special Government commission was established, which includes representatives of line ministries and law enforcement agencies.

Alikhan Smailov instructed to find out all the circumstances of the accident within 10 days and draw a conclusion.

In addition, in execution of the instructions of Head of State, given at the meeting of operative staff in Abay region, families of the victims will be paid 7 million tenge from Kazakhstan halkyna fund, and 2 million tenge for each minor child. At the same time, a separate fund was established to provide necessary support measures to the families of the victims and victims.

The following support measures will also be provided to the families of the victims:

• survivor's benefit from the republican budget for all disabled family members (children up to the age of majority);
• one-time social payment for the loss of the breadwinner from the State Social Insurance Fund for all disabled family members;
• provision of housing with necessary furniture;
• one-time payment for burial from the Unified National Pension Fund.

In addition, the credit load of the deceased persons and their family members is determined in order to write off loans.

At the same time, more than 40 Kazakhstani universities are ready to provide their grants and places in dormitories to students from families affected by the fire. Herewith for students and undergraduates who study on the paid basis the transfer to the grant is provided.

In conclusion, the Prime Minister noted the need to ensure standard material and technical equipment of environmental and forestry institutions with an emphasis on the introduction of early detection of fires, video surveillance and monitoring systems.

#Alikhan Smailov #The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan