Restoration of Albanian churches after the 2019 earthquake

A powerful earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck Albania on 26 November 2019. The epicentre of the quake was 21 kilometres from the town of Durres. The earthquake was followed by hundreds of aftershocks, some between magnitude 5 and 5.5. A number of churches were badly damaged by the earthquake. In Albania, the persecution and destruction of churches during the communist period led the Roman Catholic Church to rebuild many of its churches and to build new ones, largely without state support. The Archdiocese of Tirana-Durres has 135,000 faithful, almost half of the country's 300,000 Catholics. Hungary Helps has supported the restoration of four severely damaged churches, helping the Christian minority living in the area to practice their faith and remain in their homeland.