The Day of Remembrance (Turkmen: Hatyra Guni) is an official holiday of Turkmenistan, commemorating those who were killed in the 1948 Ashgabat earthquake on 6 October 1948.
Saparmurat Niyazov, who would later become the first President of Turkmenistan, was the only member of his family to survive the earthquake, which killed two of his brothers and as well as his mother.
The earthquake so claimed the life of Berdymukhamed Annaev, grandfather of Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, the current President.
[2] Due to censorship of the tragedy by the Communist Party of Turkmenistan and the government of the Turkmen SSR, the event was not widely reported in the national media in the Soviet Union.
The leaders of the Assembly of Turkmenistan and members of the Cabinet of Ministers lay flowers at the monument.