CROATIA/SERBIA/HUNGARY UPDATE (Saturday 9:00)

CROATIA/SERBIA/HUNGARY UPDATE (Saturday 9:00)

- Strošinci / Jamena: (GPS location 44.9059 19.08183, some 40 km south of Šid)

- Our volunteers counter 2270 refugees during the night. They have blankets and fires on concrete road between fields. 20 cops blocking the crossing, promising buses in the morning. Twenty volunteers providing blankets and water, situation stable, most of refugees are sleeping.

- In the morning water, cheapest raincoats and food wanted. If it rains, things go wrong. Buses are expected

- Bapska: many hundreds came and fluently left by police buses. Place equipped and organised.

- Opatovac: medical volunteers - doctors and nurses are needed to Medical tent of Magna Slovakia, located at Opatovac. Contact them at komunikacia@magna.sk

- Tovarnik/Sid BCP: empty at midnight, open to traffic.

- All places, especially Jamena We need plenty of volunteers from Mon upwards as many of volunteers need to return.

- This area is reported to be dangerous for LANDMINES, their position could have changed during floods in past year. Keep on paved roads!!!

- According to experienced from previous nights, quick food, water, cash money, basic cheapest raincoats for 1 euro piece, jackets, warm clothes, man boots, SOCKS!, tarpaulins 8x6 meters, headlamps with batteries, garbage bags 200 litres - many of them, energy drinks are needed on such a places.

- No need to take tents, sleeping bags, blankets - because there is not enough places or time or manpower to pitch up tents, they also provide shelter only for few persoons, comparing to tarpaulins or large tents.

- When heading to area, head for the border at Batrovci/Bajakovo. From there, you can easily help at Strošinci, Sid, Tovarnik, or Bapska. Volunteers headquarters will probably be set at Tovarnik.

- Help in the area is coordinated by Jan Skalik, he has new number: +420 776 193 056. CALL ONLY WHEN TRYING TO LOCATE ON SITE

- Croatian minister of interior Ranko Ostojic is thanking everyone who helps in his yesterday interview at RTL: "I need to thank everyone who helped here, from the police to the volunteers. They are all heroes who have helped here all day and night"

HUNGARY

- Beremend -  This border crossing is served by volunteer team coordinated by Jakub Chromy +420 774 865 251. They are providing food, water and some basic needs to those refugees, who are being bussed to  Barjansko Petrovo Selo and move via Beremend to Magyarboly train station to be taken further. There are reported 11 volunteers on site, they need need warm clothes, wet wipes and some money, as they buy water, bananas and other easy-to-give-out food on site.

There is a new Migration Aid warehouse in the area of Beremend/Magyarbóly with 10 volunteers from today, open 0-24, but we dont have its location confirmed. Anyone with more info?

- Zákány is still accepting donations and volunteers, basically the same like Beremend.

- Nickelsdorf/Hegyeshalom: Refugees are coming to Hegyeshalom in waves. Situation not critical but we need more volunteers so that others can get some sleep. Last night a train arrived at 3 am next pne at 1pm. We really need trousers,jackets and socks for adults. Austrian authorities handling situation exceptionally. Austrian updates at https://www.facebook.com/groups/RefugeesNickelsdorfFlugdach/

- There is still possibility to get supplies in Szeged at MigSzol warehouse at Gárdonyi utca 6. If you are on the way via Hungary, you can go and pick up what will be needed. Always contact coordinator before approaching Szeged: Daniel Szatmary +36307093317, donations@irpeace.org

- Budapest: central MigrationAid warehouse at Verseny Street 10, Budapest (open from 4 pm to 9 pm) accepts donations of small chocholate bars, snacks, musli bars, 0.2l juices, 0.5l still water and raincoates to be transported to Beremend and Hegyeshalom. Follow http://www.migrationaid.net/english/ and MigrationAid facebook page to daily updates what is needed.

- Hungary continues with their efforts to build a fence at Croatian border, and also some kind of fence also on Slovenian border.


GENERAL INFO

- If you are willing to donate money, you can use my paypal michal.berg@esports.cz and I will move the funds immediatelly to the people on site. Thanks to those who already donated, money are on their way to Serbia and Croatia.

- Czech only: Odkaz na manuál pro dobrovolníky: http://dobrovolnici.jdem.cz/

- When traveling to help, always take headlight, reflexion vest (!!!it's really important, we have noted some problems identifying volunteers in recent days!!!), good shoes, protective gloves and warm clothes and be prepared for rain. And be careful!


NOTE ABOUT SPREADING "URGENT" STORIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA:

Please be careful when spreading any kind of unconfirmed news on social media. Please double check everything before sharing. Also ever include date, time and location of the situation. If any of these is missing, don't share it, as you may cause more harm than good.

I don't want to disgrace any calls for help, but please be careful when considering any situation "the worst anyone has ever seen". You don't know what are the experiences of that person, you don't know what is his level of acceptance the harshness of the situation and thus what someone could see worst ever could be just regular for someone else. As far as we know, there were just a few situation when real, live-threatening danger occurred in recent weeks (excluding sea), despite many situations could led and also led to many medical problems and/or injuries.

We are in constant contact with people in field and we are assessing the situation every few hours - with having history of Keleti, Roszke, Horgos and other places in mind.

And because any unconfirmed or biased information could make tens of people to move, we are trying to confirm everything - the more desperate it sounds, the more we are trying to confirm. Situation is changing rapidly, but if we see nothing really major happens in the field, we wait for regular update. We also may be wrong and provide some misleading information, but haven't experienced any major problems so far.

Situation is harsh for both refugees and volunteers, they are facing rain, cold and many other problems. But especially we, volunteers, need to stay calm to provide our help properly. Otherwise we will make more problems than we solve.

Thank you to bear this in mind. And thank you for your help!