Thousands suffered in natural disasters and man-made accidents, Kazakh Senate Speaker

Kazakh Senate Speaker Maulen Ashimbayev took part in the parliamentary hearings on the civil protection issues, Kazinform News Agency reports.

In his welcoming speech, he said Kazakhstan faced natural disasters and man-made accidents over the last few years leading to calamities. He stressed that fire safety is one of the priorities since too many emergency situations, including devastating wildfires in Kostanay and Abai regions, raged nationwide. These two accidents starkly illustrated gaps in the work of fire extinguishing state bodies and the lack of an efficient system.

The speaker also reminded of the fire in the Almaty hostel.

To this end, the Head of State set certain tasks to modernize the country’s civil protection system. The country also faces industrial safety gaps, leading to fire at the mines in Karaganda region. Failure to follow routine maintenance, weakening control, poorly made or untimely thorough overhaul, nonsystem project and engineering solutions result in tragic events.

Ashimbayev said the world is experiencing significant seismic activity now. Kazakhstan cannot ignore this issue due to its geographic position. It is crucial to make a system-based step to ensure seismic safety.