Homeless and hopeless: On-site report from the refugee crisis at the Ukrainian border
The situation at the Poland-Ukraine border has to be seen to be believed. My visit there last week took me into the depths of some of the worst human suffering Europe has known since the end of World War II.
The driver slams on the brakes. We have just come around a sharp turn and almost plowed right into a column of people — a group of 30 to 40 people, walking together in a dense mass, gaunt and bent over with fatigue.
The group shuffles toward the side of the road, where a convoy of waiting shuttles will drive them to refugee centers here in Poland; some will opt for the one at the train station in nearby Prezmysl, while others will go a little further, to the giant hangar repurposed to accommodate refugees near the Korczowa crossing.
Our current destination is the Medyka crossing, in Poland’s Subcarpathian voivodeship. After a drive of several hours, we’ve reached the border. The driver stays in the car while I venture out with Tomasz, a local accompanying us as a translator. The further we go, the more misery we’ll see.
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