Russia’s government said it will allocate $7.01 billion for Sochi if it wins the right to host the 2014 Winter Games, said the economics minister Wednesday, and a delegation of experts led by Olympic Security specialist Peter Ashwin visited the Sochi training camp of the Ministry of Emergency Situations this week to review existing local security facilities.
Also last week in Sochi a meeting of emergency ministers from the member-states of the Organisation of the Black Seas Economic Cooperation (BSEC) was held in Sochi to work on improving emergency responses in the Black Sea region and tightening security.
Ashwin’s visit included a tour of the training facilities and meetings with various Russian specialists. The purpose of the trip was to assess the facilities’ capacities to handle Olympic security personnel training, and any conclusions made during the visit will be included in the Sochi 2014 Candidature File to ensure that the emergency planning measures meet the highest security standards required for the Games.
The BSEC emergency ministers’ delegation focused on effective emergency response and notification mechanisms and information and communication capabilities to respond to accidents and crises. Special attention was paid to airspace monitoring technologies, the use of aircrafts in fire fighting, and providing medical services to people trapped in disaster zones.
Meanwhile Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref pledged $7.01 billion between 2006 and 2014 if Sochi is successful in its 2014 Olympic bid.
Construction on new hotels and alpine skiing slopes at Krasnay Polyana is already underway, as well as in the neighbouring resort city of Gelendzhik where 170 new hotels are also under construction.
