The number of stranded asylum seekers on Lesvos reached 5,000 as more landed on the island on Tuesday, causing concern among authorities and residents.
On Tuesday morning, 90 refugees were collected by the coast guard in the sea area south of the Mytilene airport. On Monday, the total number of arrivals on Lesvos reached 175 people. As of Monday, the total number of migrants on the island was 4,846.
Overall, the number of migrants and refugees on the five northeastern Aegean islands approaches 10,000, with the existing hospitality facilities unable to accommodate the numbers.
According to an Athens News Agency report, on Lesvos there is a lack of coordination between Port Authority and the refugee reception centers. At the Moria hotspot, employees work office hours, and they are unable to process the asylum seekers in a timely manner. The director of the camp also claims staff shortages. So the burden falls on Port Authority who assume the responsibility of accommodating them.
On Monday, busloads of refugees were waiting for hours at the Moria hotspot, not being able to be serviced finally. Later, they were taken to the Mytilene Port area where they were put in tents in the open.
According to the report, the incident angered the Mytilene Harbormaster Nikolaos Passadis, who denounced the situation in a letter to the Minister of Shipping Theodoros Dritsas, notifying also the island’s public prosecutor. “I have nowhere to put them,” the harbormaster’s letter says, allegedly.
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