MOSCOW, June 20 (RIA Novosti) – Five more temporary accommodation centers have been established in the past 24 hours in southern and central Russia to receive refugees from Ukraine, a source in the Russian security services told RIA Novosti Friday.
“We have four additional temporary accommodation centers and one mobile center ready for 1,500 people in total in Rostov Region,” said the source, adding that on Friday another tent camp will be established in Rostov Region.
According to the source, as of Friday morning there were 9,670 refugees living at temporary accommodation centers, including 5,300 children. Almost 12,000 more refugees are living with their friends and relatives.
The temporary accommodation centers are mostly based at existing educational facilities, as well as summer camps and health retreats. The number of beds at temporary accommodation centers depends on the scale of the specific emergency and can be anywhere from 50 to several thousand. Tent camps are established as needed; they all have self-sustainable energy supplies (from diesel generators), field kitchens, medical centers, showers and toilets.
When needed, psychologists and other medical specialists work at temporary accommodation centers. There is an uninterrupted supply of potable water, food and medicines at the centers.
In June, Kiev’s military operation spurred a drastic increase in the number of refugees fleeing to Russia, particularly to the border region of Rostov. About 10,000 Ukrainian citizens enter Rostov Region daily; some of them are staying in the region, while others are travelling further to other destinations in Russia.
After his inauguration, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced the country’s intention to create a humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians from the combat zone in the country’s southeast, but there has been no follow-through yet.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he hoped Poroshenko would deliver on his promise. Moscow has been calling for an immediate stop to the military operation in the southeast of Ukraine, which has already led to multiple fatalities and injuries.
