The people slept, among other things, under the canopies that have been placed for shelter. Asylum seekers also slept in the sports hall on the grounds and on chairs in the waiting room of the IND. In the night from Friday to Saturday about 250 people had to sleep outside and in the night from Saturday to Sunday it was about three hundred people.
The Groningen application center has been busy for months. Asylum seekers’ centers no longer have a place and status holders cannot move on to a home due to, among other things, the overheated housing market.
The crowds at the registration center previously led to unrest and fights. The municipality of Westerwolde, which includes Ter Apel, therefore designated the forecourt of the application center as a safety risk area on Friday. This means that, for example, preventive searches can be carried out.