Ter Apel asylum center overcrowded; Hundreds more people than beds
The asylum center in Ter Apel is accommodating far more people than it has space for. Last night some 600 more people slept there than there were beds, sources told RTV Noord.
The shelter can accommodate 2,000 asylum seekers. Last night it accommodated some 2,600 people. 550 of them slept in tents, double the agreed-upon number, according to the broadcaster's sources.
The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) confirmed that the center accommodated more people than capacity but could not give exact numbers. A spokesperson did tell RTV Noord that the situation is not yet as dire as at the beginning of last month when there were hundreds too many people in the center at one point.
"We are again doing everything we can to have sufficient emergency locations in the very short term, if necessary by placing camp cots in larger locations, about which we are now in talks with municipalities," the COA spokesperson said.