Giffey appeals to Bund for help
Berlin’s accommodations are already overcrowded
03/13/2022 8:03 p.m
The number of refugees from Ukraine arriving in Berlin is extremely high compared to other federal states. Thousands of people sleep in collective accommodation, but also in trains and buses at the main station. An easing of the situation is not in sight – quite the opposite.
Every evening around 1,000 newly arrived war refugees from the Ukraine have to be taken care of and initially housed in Berlin. This weekend alone there were even a total of around 4,000 people, reported Berlin’s Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey in front of a new emergency shelter in the former Tegel Airport. “Berlin cannot regulate everything on its own, but needs more support from the federal government,” she said. All other federal states have reported between 600 and 1300 free places per day in the past few days. Social Senator Katja Kipping therefore emphasized: “Berlin pulls together as much as all other federal states.”
Giffey said on March 10 she asked the Bundeswehr for a total of 240 soldiers for an operation in three shifts of 80 employees each, but has not yet received an official answer. However, there are indications that no help is available. She will write to all officials and employees in the country on Monday and ask for help. 600 people are needed to get the entire organization up and running. “It’s not just a Berlin task, it’s a national task.” In the future, more than 10,000 refugees are expected to arrive every day from the war zones attacked by Russia.
Berlin is preparing for up to 15,000 refugees a day
In the old main terminal of Tegel Airport, almost 500 beds were set up in three days, in separate areas for 10 people each. According to the information, 425 people, 105 of them children, slept there on Sunday night. A large tent is currently being set up on the old runway in Tegel: the new arrival center for 10,000 to 15,000 people per day, who will be brought there directly from the train stations. They are to be registered there and then distributed to other federal states. Giffey spoke of a phased build-up and an opening later in the week. Everything should be completely finished next weekend.
In the past few nights, refugees have also spent the night in the main train station on trains and BVG buses. It was said that these people stayed at the station voluntarily because they wanted to travel on. In the future, the federal government and Berlin will take care of and pay for the meals for the arriving refugees at the main train station. Together with the fair, 10,000 portions of food are to be provided per day: soup, sandwiches, fruit, sweets, tea and water.