Explosions at a military ammunition depot killed at least 20 people on 15 March 2008. Over 350 people were injured, including 40 seriously. The accident occurred during a program to destroy ammunition at the depot in Gerdec, which is near Vore village. Doctors expect the final number of deaths to be higher. Click here to read a UN situation report.

Some 400 houses were completely destroyed, ten times more were damaged and 4,000 residents were evacuated from the area. Thousands of unexploded artillery shells, mortar shells, grenades, and small arms munitions have been scattered into the surrounding area, up to 5km away.

Humanitarian assistance will need to include search teams to recover bodies, teams to decontaminate the area of unexploded ordinance, shelter for the evacuated residents, and their eventual rehabilitation. Several countries have offered assistance to the Albanian government.

Surplus ammunition stockpiles are currently the focus of a UN Group of Governmental Experts, which is expected to produce recommendations later this year. Between 1998 and 2008, there have been at least 34 explosions at ammunition storage areas worldwide, killing and injuring thousands of people.

The Albanian government declared a national day of mourning on 18 March. It has requested international assistance to safely destroy over 100,000 tonnes of obsolete ammunition stored in stockpiles throughout the country.

Click here to read a press release from the United Nations in Albania.