The fortieth anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Montenegro marked

The Ministry of the Interior is carrying out a number of specific preventive-planning and educational activities to better respond to potential earthquakes, Interior Minister Mevludin Nuhodžić said today at a scientific conference marking the fortieth anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Montenegro.

Montenegro has established a system for coordination and management in protection and rescue in the event of earthquakes and other disasters, said Minister Nuhodžić adding that at the state level, there are about 150 trained rescuers for rescue from the ruins, and in the Directorate for Emergency mangement there are records of material - technical means that would be used in the event of an earthquake. Most importantly, there are clear and precisely defined operational procedures as to who reacts in case of large-scale earthquakes and how.

The Coordination Team for Protection and Rescue headed by the Prime Minister, as well as the Operational Headquarters for Protection and Rescue, have been established and work well in practice, and municipal protection and rescue teams have been established at the municipal level.

Earthquake is, of course, the most complicated hazard that cannot be predicted and whose removal of consequences needs a quick and efficient response from the authorities, said Minister Nuhodžić. "Montenegro has the capacities for the first response, which is the most necessary and most needed, in terms of finding victims, their care, clearing the terrain and forming temporary settlements. We have a system of protection and rescue at the local and state level, but we must constantly strengthen it and invest further in the equipment and training of rescuers, other participants in the system, as well as work on the establishment of material reserves for the needs of the system ", emphasized Nuhodžić.

The Minister of Sustainable Development and Tourism Pavle Radulović also spoke at the opening of the scientific conference, who announced that the respect of plans and procedures and the fight against illegal construction could reduce seismic risks.

"We are guarding the lives of people by combating illegal construction, because the analysis of earthquake disasters in recent times shows that the tragic effects are most complicated in areas with illegal buildings and those where there is no respect for modern architectural and construction standards. That is why it is up to us, especially in the profession, to build up the regulations and to reduce the seismic risk as much as possible. To respect the plans and procedures, to respect the space and nature around us, "Minister Radulović said.

As he said, today's gathering requires that once again it be emphasized how important it is to observe the regulations of the profession and added that safety is the first reason why the fight against illegal construction was started, which increases the risk of disasters, especially when it comes to earthquakes.

According to the Director General of the Directorate for Civil Engineering, Tatjana Vujošević, through building we are encouraging the development of the economy and development in society as a whole. "Therefore, the houses we live in, the facilities we work in, the airports, the roads and the railways we are moving on, the facilities of telecommunication and energy systems are just a part of the list of various construction objects that we must, in the event of an earthquake, make safe and secure," said Vujošević .

She said that a good construction practice and implementation of the regulations are the basis of earthquake resilience, and that it is necessary, after the adoption of the new construction regulations, that all of us make significant efforts in order to apply them in their entirety.
The devastating earthquake, which occurred on April 15, 1979 at 7:19 AM, had a magnitude of seven degrees on the Richter scale, i.e. nine degrees of Mercalli. The earthquake lasted ten seconds and was mostly felt along the Montenegrin and Albanian coast, severely damaging the old towns of Kotor, Budva, Herceg Novi, Bar and Ulcinj. 101 people died in the earthquake, while more than a thousand were injured, and about 80,000 people were left homeless.