KHUJAND, April 30, 2011, Asia-Plus  -- A special commission is currently working in Sughd’s Asht district to assess an actual damage caused to the district by Thursday’s mudslide.

Ismoil Ismoilov, an official with the Sughd emergency management agency, says torrential rain on April 28 caused a mudslide that seriously affected the Asht and Oshoba jamoats (communities).

“The landslide destroyed two kilometers of road in the village of Gudos and killed more than ten head of cattle and sheep and goats,” said Ismoilov.  “Besides, the mudslide damaged in several sections the road connecting the villages of Obi Asht, Bobokir and Ashti Bolo, destroyed several footbridges and damaged power transmission lines.”

Specialists from the Sughd emergency management agency are currently working in the mudslide site to mitigate its effects.

According to Ismoilov, 175 emergency situations, including natural disasters, have been reported in Sughd province since the beginning of this year.  A total damage caused by the reported emergency situations has been estimated 403,441 somoni.  48 people have been killed; 36 of them have been killed in traffic accidents, two persons have been killed in fires, nine other have drowned and one local resident has been killed in a land mine explosion on the Uzbek border, Ismoilov said.

In 2010, 33 natural disasters, including 25 floods and mudslides, were reported in northern Tajikistan.  A total damage caused by last year’s natural disasters was estimated at 30.5 million somoni, the Sughd emergencies official said.