Two months after the outbreak of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, hundreds of refugees are still arriving in Munich every day. In the meantime, more than 33,000 people have been counted, mainly stranded at the main station. “But not everyone stays,” said Mayor Verena Dietl (SPD) on Tuesday afternoon in a video conference of the city council. In the past few days, the curve of arrivals has flattened slightly, said Wolfgang Schäuble, head of the city’s crisis management team. So far, 12,141 refugees from Ukraine have registered in the city. However, since these do not initially have to be registered, it is unclear how many people currently live here. Dietl spoke of more than 8,000 people who found accommodation through the private housing agency.
However, this high number also poses problems. At the moment nobody knows how long the hosts will continue to take in the refugees. If they move out of private accommodation in the coming weeks or months, they will probably have to stay in temporary buildings or other accommodation for the time being. “I believe that we are heading towards a catastrophe with our eyes open for private accommodation,” said City Councilor Thomas Lechner (left). He fears that up to 6,000 people will be standing on the streets in the near future.
In fact, social officer Dorothee Schiwy (SPD) concedes that the more than 12,000 refugees from Ukraine cannot be automatically included in the municipal homeless system. But according to the plans of the federal government, this seems to be mandatory from June 1st. Schiwy therefore hopes that there will then have to be a distribution of people to other federal states according to the Königstein key, which was used after the refugee autumn of 2015.
95 minors came from Ukraine alone
At least the organization for the distribution, care and registration of the arriving refugees now seems to be working smoothly. Anyone who arrives at the main train station can get advice from Caritas employees at the Starnberg wing station, Schiwy said in her management report. If you want to travel on but stay overnight here, you can do so directly at the Hotel Regent near the train station, where vulnerable refugees are also accommodated.
All others who want to stay in Munich and do not yet have accommodation are taken to the arrival center in the exhibition center, where people are tested and registered for Corona, but also receive advice and support. There are games for children, help for mothers and social counseling for expectant mothers. According to Schiwy, unaccompanied children and young people are accommodated and cared for primarily in the Young Refugee Center (currently the number of beds there is to be increased to 66) and in Kistlerhofstrasse (about 40 to 50 places). According to the social services department, a total of 140 unaccompanied minors have been admitted since March 9, 95 of whom came from Ukraine.
According to health officer Beatrix Zurek (SPD), medical care for refugees has also been greatly expanded in recent weeks. Since March 26, 1,300 people have been treated in the mobile consultation alone, which visits patients in the accommodations. In addition, up to 100 tests can be carried out daily for tuberculosis, the disease is apparently widespread in Ukraine.
Nevertheless, the lightweight halls and the trade fair for accommodation are “only the very last option,” said Mayor Dietl. Schiwy’s deputy in the social department, Sebastian Groth, emphasized that the fair was designed for up to 4,000 people, “but for us the pain limit is 2,000 people”. Currently, 50 real estate properties are being checked throughout the city, and 3,000 spaces should be ready for occupancy by autumn.