Refugee Warning Alert
Royal Group Charity Foundation is warning that adverse weather conditions across Europe are threatening to expose thousands of desperate refugees fleeing an escalating war in Syria and other conflicts.
The charity’s call comes ahead of a high level European Union summit on refugees in Malta last week, where the continent’s political leaders learned that record numbers of refugees have arrived in Europe over the past month in time for the advent of winter.
Many presumed the influx of refugees to Europe would start to slow with the arrival of winter, but there’s no evidence that the numbers are falling. In fact, we are seeing the opposite with the UNHCR’s anticipating as many as 5,000 arrivals to reach European shores each day between November 2015 and February 2016. Europe is facing a race against time and the elements. It’s clear that the harsh weather conditions are likely to exacerbate the suffering of the people traveling through the Balkans, and may result in further loss of life if adequate measures are not taken urgently at the very top level.
Tens of thousands of people including children find themselves trapped in the open as the skies darken and the first night frosts take hold. Across the Balkans, temperatures are tumbling to as low as -12°C at night in the makeshift camps where refugees are staying with no heating facilities. Hypothermia, pneumonia and opportunistic diseases are the main threats now, along with the growing desperation of refugees trying to save the lives of their families.
Shelter, food, winter clothing and blankets, as well as other essential items for protecting people from the elements are required urgently.
According to the UNHCR, up to a total of 600,000 are expected to arrive in Croatia, Greece, Serbia, Slovenia and Macedonia between November 2015 and February 2016. In previous years, migrant crossings of the Mediterranean Sea dropped significantly in the winter, as the harsher weather made the hazardous journey even more difficult. But a similar reduction is not expected this year.
An estimated 760,000 refugees have arrived in Europe this year along unofficial and dangerous land and sea routes, from Syria, Eritrea, Afghanistan, Iraq, North Africa, Nigeria and beyond. So far this year, more than 3,400 people have lost their lives or been reported missing as they seek to reach Europe.
Royal Group Charity is doing everything within its powers to accelerate the process by spreading this awareness to support families of loved ones in conflicted areas to help develop a solution of securing a better location that has more accessible facilities in place.