Every day tens of thousands of war refugees stream from Ukraine into the countries of Europe. Many of them are looking for protection and safety in Germany: almost 150,000 people have already come to us. And that is just the beginning.
By Guido Roseman
In Berlin, the first closures at the main train station are threatening, Munich says it is in “disaster mode” – an overview of the German refugee centers.
►Hamburg
Around 9,000 people have arrived in Hamburg since the beginning of the war, and around 1,000 are currently being registered every day. In Harburg, a former Fegro wholesale store has just been converted into a dormitory. It was also used during the 2015 refugee crisis. The DRK operates the emergency accommodation, 600 camp beds were set up in the 11,500 square meter hall.
The people are to be registered here, tested for Corona, housed and distributed to other countries from this week onwards. In addition, five gyms in the Hanseatic city were set up as emergency shelters.
►Munich
Mayor Verena Dietl (42, SPD) to BILD: “We have an average of 1,500 refugees a day. Our priority was to set up beds. By Wednesday there should be 7,000 – 4,000 of them in the exhibition.”
After initial criticism from independent helpers, Munich is slowly getting the situation under control. Nobody has to spend the night on the floor of the main station anymore. But: “We are in disaster mode,” said Mayor Dietl.
► Berlin
The main train station is increasingly reaching its limits, and trains are currently being converted into night camps for refugees. For security reasons, railway experts are now even discussing partial closures of the main station with specially designated areas only for refugees.
Social Senator Katja Kipping (left) believes that the rush of numerous war refugees in Berlin will continue for a long time to come. “Every day, every night is a race for the full-time employees and for the volunteers,” Kipping said on Monday on rbb Inforadio with a view to creating sleeping places for the newcomers.
“Sometimes you have the feeling that you have to run a little faster every day,” said the senator. “And at the same time we know that we are really preparing for a marathon. Everything we have experienced so far is just the beginning.”
The state of Berlin is currently taking in as many refugees every night as all other federal states put together, Kipping emphasized again. She estimates that at least two-thirds of people are also finding private accommodation.
►Cologne
In the past few days there have been long queues in front of the “Central Immigration Office” of the city of Cologne. War refugees from the Ukraine came to the authorities in Kalk and wanted to get their papers. “Once it’s your turn, there’s information and you feel like you’re in good hands,” says a Ukrainian who wants to remain anonymous to BILD. “But the waiting times are very long.”
According to the city of Cologne, the problem with waiting times is due to Corona, among other things. “Due to the pandemic situation, unfortunately only a limited number of people can enter the building and the waiting areas. That’s why waiting times outside the building are unfortunately unavoidable,” says city director Andrea Blome.
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► The situation in the counties
The district council demands an even distribution of the many thousands of war refugees from Ukraine throughout Germany in order to prevent individual districts and cities from being overburdened.
The number of refugees is increasing significantly, said President Reinhard Sager of the “Rheinische Post”. “That’s why the quick assistance of the districts is one thing, a resilient long-term perspective is another.” The district association is the representation of the 294 districts in Germany.
“In due course” the topic of costs will also have to be discussed with the federal and state governments, he said. In this regard, amicable solutions were also found when hundreds of thousands of migrants entered the country in 2015 and 2016. “We are confident that the federal and state governments will live up to their responsibility for the municipalities, which will again shoulder the main burden of taking in the displaced.”
Since the start of the Russian attack on February 24, 146,998 people have come to Germany from Ukraine, the Federal Ministry of the Interior announced on Monday. However, only those refugees who are identified by the federal police are recorded.
However, since there are usually no fixed border controls at the internal EU borders and Ukrainians are initially allowed to enter the country without a visa, the number of war refugees who have entered Germany could actually be significantly higher.