The Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC) has issued a press statement regarding the consequences of the massive floods of January 6, 2026, demanding institutional accountability, as well as transparency and objectivity in the process of assessing damages and compensating affected residents.
According to the statement, on January 16, 2026, a group of AHC observers conducted a partial monitoring in the Municipality of Durres, specifically in the area known as “Këneta”, where they met with residents and inspected flood-damaged homes. Meetings were also held with representatives of local authorities, including the Administrator of Administrative Unit No. 6, the Prefect of Durres District, and representatives of the Directorate of Rural Services, Agriculture and Civil Emergencies in the Municipality of Durres.
AHC emphasizes that local authorities have cited the main cause of the floods as unregulated waste disposal and illegal interventions in the sewage infrastructure. However, according to the organization, an objective conclusion requires a comprehensive verification, including an assessment of the obligations of the institutions responsible for cleaning and maintaining the sewage system, as well as the implementation of the “polluter pays” principle.
In the statements, referring to Law No. 139/2015 "On Local Self-Government", municipalities are responsible for managing rainwater, protecting against floods, maintaining local infrastructure and treating waste in their territory. In this context, AHC assesses that the state cannot attribute responsibility only to residents, but must also clarify whether local authorities have fulfilled their legal obligations.
The organization also raises concerns about the lack of information for citizens regarding the compensation procedures. Some of the residents questioned were not aware of the steps they had to follow, while others had not received copies of the damage assessment reports and were not informed about the progress of the process. According to AHC, this conflicts with the principles of transparency and equality, as well as with the legal obligations for informing the public, provided for in Law No. 45/2019 “On Civil Protection”.
Another identified problem is related to the lack of personnel in Administrative Unit No. 6, where according to AHC, the administrator was single-handedly dealing with a large influx of requests from around 1200–1300 heads of households. The organization emphasizes that administrative units must be equipped with sufficient human capacity to cope with civil emergencies.
declaration
On 16.01.2026, a group of observers from the Albanian Helsinki Committee conducted a partial monitoring to verify the situation of the massive floods of January 6 that had affected several cities in Albania for several days. The monitoring was carried out in the Municipality of Durres, where meetings were held with residents of the “Kënetës” area and their residential houses were inspected on the ground. Meetings were also held with representatives of local authorities, including the Administrator of Administrative Unit No. 6, the Prefect of Durres District, and the representative of the Directorate of Rural Services, Agriculture, and Civil Emergencies in the Municipality of Durres.
Taking into account the findings of this monitoring and the fact that the floods also affected other cities in the country, as well as the importance of the right to a peaceful family life and the positive obligations that the state has to protect the life and health of citizens, AHC considers it appropriate to share some concerns and recommendations as follows:
Local authorities cite the main cause of the floods as the uncontrolled dumping of waste by citizens or interference with the infrastructure of the sewage system. AHC estimates that in order to reach an objective conclusion, a comprehensive verification is needed, also overseeing the implementation of tasks by the institutions responsible for cleaning and maintaining the sewage system, as well as institutions that have the duty to protect the environment, in accordance with the “polluter pays” principle. The state cannot place all the blame on residents, but must also assume its responsibilities by informing whether local authorities have accurately fulfilled their duties and responsibilities in this regard. Residents must also be continuously made aware.
It is worth noting that according to Law No. 139/2015 “On Local Self-Government”, in the field of infrastructure and public services, municipalities are responsible in the territory of their jurisdiction for the collection, removal and treatment of rainwater and protection from floods in residential areas, the construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of local roads, the collection, removal and treatment of solid and household waste (according to Article 23 of this law) as well as taking care of preventing illegal interventions in the drinking water supply network and the sewage system of white water and polluted water, the protective canals of residential areas, as well as the network of tertiary irrigation and drainage canals.
The situation created by the rainfall at the beginning of this year requires the drafting of a plan of structural and non-structural measures by all local government units nationwide, in order to prevent other massive floods in the future, if they are related only to the unauthorized interventions in the city's sewer system, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter II of Law No. 45/2019 "On Civil Protection".
Some of the citizens questioned were not informed about the procedures they should follow with the local authorities in order to obtain the appropriate compensation. The other part of the residents who had submitted copies of the documentation required for the assessment of damages, were not provided with a copy of the minutes kept by the commission on the ground for the assessment of damages and were not aware of how the compensation process would continue. Citizens should be made aware, in accordance with the principle of equality, of the procedures they should follow for the claim for damages, while the authorities need to maintain documentation that enables transparency for both residents and the institution itself, at the time they carry out verifications at the residences for the assessment of damages. Informing the public and the community at risk from natural disasters about the risk assessment process is one of the main tasks that Article 28, 30 of Law No. 45/2019 “On Civil Protection” has assigned to the Prefect of the District and Municipalities.
Given the situation of vacancies found in the staff of Administrative Unit No. 6 (two inspectors were missing and the administrator was alone coping with the created workload, where it was estimated that around 1200-1300 heads of households had reported to the Unit about the situation), we emphasize that the Administrative Units must be equipped with the necessary personnel to cope with civil emergencies and the administration of complaints and requests from residents.
AHC also estimates that the appearance of field working groups, established by the Municipality, with a time gap from the moment the flood situation occurred, may affect the objectivity of the damage assessment for each apartment, either by affecting the decrease or even the increase in their real value.
Despite the fact that, based on Order No. 01, dated 06.01.2026 of the Municipality of Durrës, it was foreseen that the deadline for completing the drafting of the minutes, as well as the technical-legal documentation by the commission is 5 days from its establishment, by the time the monitoring by the AHC was carried out, the damage assessment procedure had not yet been completed, while there was no fixed date when the process was intended to be concluded, in order for the Municipal Council to determine the total value of the damages and then for this act to be verified by the District Prefect, in accordance with the provisions of Article 8 of Law No. 107/2016 “On the District Prefect”.
Finally, AHC emphasizes the need for the Council of Ministers to carry out the assessment process, determine the value of the damages and distribute the compensation in accordance with the principles of efficiency, effectiveness and economy, within a reasonable time frame, as some of the residents referred to a similar flooding situation that had occurred 3 years ago, but they had received compensation with a delay, approximately 2 years later. We take this suggestion into account, given the difficult socio-economic conditions of some of the families contacted and the damages caused.
