UNHCR has started replacing tents with residential containers at eight government-run sites for refugees in Greece.
No sooner had Omar Mustafa and his family moved into the new accommodation allocated to them than he set to work building an outdoor kitchen and – with nails, screws and a hammer in his hands – he is making an improvised lock for it.
The Syrian family, previously housed in a tent, moved in a few days ago and immediately started making the drab, prefabricated building into a cosy home.
“The difference is huge,” said Omar’s wife, Banan, mother of four sons and two daughters between one and 12 years. “First of all it is much warmer now. This morning it was raining again and it was the first time when we did not feel it.”
Thirty-two-year old Banan is due to give birth to their seventh child in December. “When we were in a tent, rainwater could get inside and we were always panicking. Now we just have to close the door and windows and we stay dry.”
The Nea Kavala accommodation site for refugees in northern Greece is one of eight government-run sites in the country where UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has started replacing tents with residential containers, known as prefab houses.
The site, a former military camp, was prepared by the Greek army and opened in February this year. Its windy location made tent living precarious for the refugees.
“We don’t know yet how it will feel like in strong wind but, in any case it is much better now,” said Omar, 41. Those who have moved into the new prefabricated houses are relieved to be protected not only from rain, cold and wind, but also from insects, rats and snakes that they say were hazards of life in a tent.
In Nea Kavala, over 170 prefab houses have been installed on an old runway, close together but still giving the residents privacy.
