Pupovac: Two Serbs among victims of devastating earthquake in Croatia

Petrinja; Photo: Tanjug/AP

Among the victims of yesterday's earthquake in Croatia are two Serbs and one girl from a mixed Serb-Croat marriage, who was the first identified victim of the earthquake, President of Serb National Council (SNV) in Croatia Milorad Pupovac said last night.

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"Out of the seven earthquake victims, five were identified in Majske Poljanje in the area of ​​the town of Glina, of which two are Croats who immigrated from Bosnia and Herzegovina and one Croat who came from other parts of Croatia, as well as two Serbs - one young man and one elderly man," Pupovac told Tanjug.

A girl from a mixed Serb-Croat marriage, who was the first known victim of the earthquake, lost her life in Petrinja, Pupovac added.

The seventh victim, as Pupovac said, is an organist found in the ruins of the parish church of St. Nicholas and St. Vitus in Zazina.

"As for the damage, in some areas the damage is great, such as Majske Poljanje and the town of Glina, as well as the town of Petrinja and some villages near Petrinja, Sisak, Kostajnica, and a little less so in Dvor na Uni," said Pupovac.

When it comes to Serb institutions, the biggest damage has been done to the parish home of a Serbian Orthodox church in Petrinja, where, as Pupovac stated, the renovation of the 250-year-old building, which housed the parish house, was completed a few years ago.

"There was a chapel inside. That must be torn down because so much of it has been destroyed, now the registry books and valuable gospels are being salvaged," Pupovac specified.

A Serbian Orthodox church in Sisak was also damaged, and there is no information about other Serb churches yet, said the president of the SNV.

"People are sleeping in their cars in front of their homes, guarding their cattle and their property. Tonight, the government launched an initiative for the procurement of housing containers, so that people can stay in front of their houses and start repairs," Pupovac added.

(Telegraf.rs)