The quality of life in Gyumri will fundamentally change, Armenian prime minister Karen Karapetyan said on the 29th anniversary of the devastating earthquake that hit the country's northwestern parts in 1988.

Karapetyan visited Gyumri on Thursday, December 7 to pay tribute to the victims of the quake.

29 years ago today, at 11:41 am local time, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake shook northwestern Armenia followed by a magnitude 5.8 aftershock four minutes later. In the epicenter, the village of Nalband, the tremors were reported to measure 10 on the Richter scale.

The earthquake leveled the cities of Spitak and Gyumri, as well as about 60 villages, leaving al least 25,000 people dead, 100,000 wounded and 500,000 homeless.

"We must work regularly and every day to make a change here," the premier said.

"The problems facing Gyumri and the people in general are surmountable, we only need to be optimistic and work really hard."