There is a water shortage problem in the Babussalem refugee camp located in Syria’s Azez town.
One of the 5,000 Syrian refugees living in this camp, Muhammad Neccar, talked about the water shortage problem in the camp to the IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation.
He said water which is brought to the camp once or twice a week via tankers is sufficient only for several days.
“My daughters carry muddy water to our tent, keep it waiting for some time and then use the clean part of it for laundry and washing the dishes,” he said.
Neccar also noted that those living in the camp are unable to take a bath for months due to the lack of water while those who can find water heat it in pots by lighting fires outside the tents and have bath inside the tent asking others to leave.
Many children in the camp have contracted epidemics or jaundice due to lack of hygiene, caused by water shortage.
IHH teams which provide medical services in the region and work to disinfect the camps, are searching for a solution to the rapidly-growing water shortage problem.
Neccar said some families use the same water to wash their dishes and laundry, adding: “We are afraid to have a bath in this time when we have difficulty in sleeping due to cold. If it goes on like this, there will be more serious problems in the upcoming days.”
All the trees in the region have been uprooted to be used for heating. There is no longer any wood in the region to be used for heating. Neccar said the remaining wood will be sufficient for heating only for 1-2 weeks.
“For about a week, we were able to light a fire at nights. We will no longer be able to do that. We will have nothing to use for heating,” he said.
Despite cold, Fatma and Zeynep sisters who are at age of 10 fill water in a bucket to take it to their tent. They forgot being a child and do their best to help their families without any complaints.
Fatma and Zeynep sisters who live in the Babussalam Refugee Camp spend all their day to fill water in buckets and search for wood for heating.
