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Overcrowding problem of Austrian refugee center to be resolved: spokesperson

Xinhua, August 21, 2015 Adjust font size:

Austria's largest refugee center will solve its much-publicized overcrowding problem in two or three weeks, a spokesperson for the Interior Ministry said Thursday.

The implementation of intake freeze for the center, which halted receiving refugees from Aug. 5, has alleviated the problem that left many refugees sleeping in the open, Human Rights Coordinator for the Interior Ministry Walter Ruscher was quoted by state broadcaster ORF as saying.

The center, designed to house 1,800 persons, is home to more than 4,000 refugees as of the end of July. There are 2,677 refugees in the center, with another 1,039 persons living in tents outside.

The intake freeze has significantly helped with the problem of refugees sleeping without shelters, Ruscher said, given the number has been reduced to 455, compared with that of close to 2,000 previously.

Other problems such as sanitation, food distribution, and long queues for medical aid have also been overcome, according to the spokesman.

As some refugees chose to sleep outside in the hopes of being processed more quickly, 100 beds in the center are currently available, he said. Endi