The parliamentary request notes that Almaty is one of the most earthquake-prone cities in the country, where strong earthquakes of up to 10 points are possible. At the same time, according to the authors of the appeal, the issues of civil protection in the current documents are predominantly advisory in nature and are not enshrined as a mandatory system.
Deputies point out that, in their assessment, the materials of the current and amended General Plan of the city do not contain comprehensive solutions for the formation of safe public spaces for evacuation and gathering of the population. It is also noted that the legislation in the field of civil protection does not have a clear regulatory definition of the concept of “place of gathering of the population in emergency situations” and the requirements for such territories.
The request contains responses from authorized bodies, in which citizens are advised in the event of an earthquake to go to open areas away from buildings, power lines and trees. However, as deputies emphasize, such recommendations are not enshrined as mandatory standards and are not provided with infrastructure.
Special attention is drawn to the situation with the use of the territories of schools and kindergartens as potential evacuation centers. In particular, the territory of school-lyceum No. 131 named after Bauyrzhan Momyshuly is mentioned, where, according to deputies, the building of nursery-kindergarten No. 115 has already been erected and additional construction is planned, despite the fact that the site is assigned to one of the prefabricated evacuation points of Almaty.
Deputies also cite the example of Akademgorodok, where, according to them, the only free public area – a square – was built up with residential complexes, despite requests from residents to preserve the space as a public zone and a potential gathering place in case of emergency.
According to the authors of the request, this practice leads to a reduction in open areas in the metropolis, which may reduce the city’s level of preparedness for natural emergencies.
The faction of the People’s Party of Kazakhstan proposes that the Ministry of Emergency Situations urgently consider the problem and develop systemic solutions. The deputies also ask the Prosecutor General’s Office to give a legal assessment of the situation related to the lack of regulatory support and actual infrastructure of gathering places for the population during emergencies.
The appeal was signed by faction deputies Irina Smirnova, Irina Sunkar, Maharramov, Asylbek Nuralin, Kenzhegul Seitzhan, as well as Bakhytzhan Bazarbek.
It was previously reported that basements and underground parking lots will become shelters during an emergency in Kazakhstan.
