Armenia's Alaverdi still struggling with recovery one year after severe flooding

One year after severe flooding hit the town of Alaverdi in Armenia’s Lori Province, the scars of the disaster remain fresh. According to local resident and journalist Tatevik Chughuryan, little has changed since then and the government’s recovery efforts remain incomplete.

"Even before the floods, Alaverdi was a grim town due to high unemployment and numerous community problems," Chughuryan told Panorama.am in an interview. “After the flooding, those problems only multiplied. The disaster caused massive damage not just to the city, but also to its residents, who lost their homes, gardens, vehicles and other property.”

While some basic infrastructure has been restored, including sewage, gas and electricity lines, and new bridges have been built with foreign funding, many critical issues remain unaddressed. Several key roads in the town have only been partially repaired, with missing retaining walls that pose serious risks to both vehicles and pedestrians. Some areas, particularly around the Sanahin Bridge, remain in a hazardous condition.

Chughuryan noted that although some families have been able to repair and return to their homes with state assistance, many others are still awaiting the promised housing vouchers. Displaced residents, many of them elderly or from low-income households, are either renting accommodations without state support or continue to live in damaged and unsafe homes.

Compensation has been uneven, she added. Homeowners, orchard owners and small business owners either received insufficient funds or none at all. In the hardest-hit districts of Tumanyan and Sanahin Station, poor road conditions, dust and repeated flooding during rainstorms persist due to unpaved yards.

“Given that the bridges in Karkop, Akhtala and Sanahin Station were installed with funding from Iran and Greece, not a single government-led flood recovery program has been fully completed in one year,” the reporter stated.

Pictured: Tatevik Chughuryan