There were no immediate reports of injuries, and officials said they were still assessing the extent of the damage. George Mutafis, a photographer on the ground, told the Greek TV channel Mega that the camp was “completely destroyed.”
“Morea camp no longer exists,” Mutfis said. The camp is completely destroyed. The boxes and tents are completely destroyed. The fire is out now. Many migrants and refugees have now returned to the camp and are looking for their belongings. ”
Greek officials said the cause of the fire could not be ascertained. The camp is under lockdown after 35 people tested positive for the Covid-19 earlier this week. Local media suggested the fire could have been started on purpose.
A German charity group at the scene said a protest had started at the camp on Tuesday night over the lockdown measures.
The German group’s mission Lifeline said in a statement:
The statement said, “Earlier, a dispute broke out at Covid 19 station in the camp which spread to the entire area during the night. Security forces used tear gas. “A large part of the houses burned down. The homeless fled to the surrounding olive kiln.”
Axel Steer, co-founder of Mission Life, said he warned that the situation would “exacerbate” the camp’s poor conditions, calling the lockout measures “the last straw”.
“The people of Morea are facing a lot of psychological stress. The lockdown of the camp has now become the final straw,” Steer said. “Morea refugees are not treated as human beings.
“Among other things, we (German) have repeatedly called on the federal government to evacuate all people from the camps in Greece. But hardly anything has happened,” Stear added.
Camp Morea is spread out in olive groves outside the main UN camp, where thousands of people live in wooden huts built of wooden bullets and tarpaulins, tied with nails. Residents say they wait for hours to use the bathroom, and sometimes spend the whole day queuing for food.
