The cold and rain take their toll on those expelled from B9: "There isn't so much misery in Africa"

BadalonaOn a Sant Esteve marked by rain and cold, Ousseynou Touré complains that he has nothing hot to eat. Since being expelled from the abandoned B9 high school in Badalona, he has been living under the C-31 bridge in a tent, which is completely soaked due to the storm that has hit the city in the last two days. He is unwell, has the flu, and is worried that his health will worsen. "With this cold, I won't last much longer," he says. Like him, dozens of people who lived in the B9 until 10 days ago are still sleeping outdoors with no alternative to where they can go, beyond this refugee camp on the outskirts of one of the most populated cities in Catalonia. "We are in the 21st century, who should have to live like this? There isn't so much misery in Africa," he asks.

While the rain falls heavily, some of the displaced people still remain under the bridge. They were not relocated by the Red Cross and the Department of Social Rights. Because they wanted more information to decide whether to leave their lives in Badalona for temporary shelter, even if only for two months. Many of them have jobs and friends in the city, and they don't want to give it all up if they'll be back on the street in a few weeks. Carles Sagués, from the local organization Badalona Acull, explains that the relocations in recent hours have been done very slowly, mainly thanks to volunteers who are accompanying those affected to other cities, and he regrets that the Catalan government's plan hasn't been more consistent.

The haste and improvisation in setting up the plan, says Sagués, meant that many of these people didn't understand what was being offered to them. Hammed, for example, laments that no one has asked them anything, that everything is being decided for them by others. He emphasizes that he came to Catalonia to earn a living and help his family, like the rest of his "brothers" with whom he shares a tent under the bridge. "We want to contribute to society, work, pay taxes, and they won't let us," he argues. He arrived less than a year ago from Germany, where he says human rights are respected, and admits that if he had known he was going to live under a bridge, he wouldn't have come. "In my country, I've never slept on the street."

In fact, All those evicted from B9 who were interviewed by this newspaper only talk about working and living with dignity.Those still under the bridge have nowhere else to go, and they pass the time and endure the cold as best they can. They listen to music, keep each other company, and help one another. Others are simply silent, lost in thought. Ousseynou Touré maintains that each of the people there is responsible for a family back home. "I have a wife and three children. I didn't come here to mess around, I came here to work," he asserts. He has worked mainly packing and selling fish, but it was physically demanding work, and now he has sciatica and can no longer do it. He just wants to get better so he can go back, but he knows he won't be able to recover while sleeping in a tent under the bridge.

Accidents and illnesses

Aside from the volunteers working tirelessly to care for the displaced people under the bridge, providing food, drinks, and clothing, more people are arriving daily to help in any way they can. This is the case of Matar, a young Senegalese man who also lived in the B9 building, but who has been luckier and has been sharing an apartment in Santa Coloma de Gramenet for the past two weeks. Before arriving at the B9, he lived in a squat in the Gorg neighborhood, which the Badalona City Council, under the popular mayor Xavier García Albiol, also evicted. He ironically admits that he is fed up with speaking to the media to denounce the situation he has been living in for years in Badalona. "I've lost my voice; I've gone hoarse from asking for a solution for so long," he says. He is worried about all the people still living under the bridge, since they "have lost their lives" in their country and here as well; they "have nothing left."

Hammed says they are trying to be strong, but admits they are losing hope. "They're driving us crazy. I've lost my phone and I can't talk to my family anymore. We can't shower, we can't go to the bathroom. We just want to get our lives back on track, we're not criminals." From Badalona Acull, they warn that the health of the people under the C-31 bridge is at risk, and not just because of the cold and rain. The Modou Lamin Dramme, known by the nickname of CoffeeHe broke his foot and can barely move. Sources from the organization explained to ARA that another of those evicted had to have a finger amputated because he injured it while collecting scrap metal, and sleeping in these conditions, it became infected, and nothing could be done to treat it.

For all these reasons, Sagués is demanding that the Government resume the relocation operation starting Saturday, once the holidays are over. Sources from Social Rights, however, explained to ARA that they are ruling out further operations like the one they carried out with the Red Cross and will now begin a phase of analyzing each case individually, so the expectation is that these people will remain under the bridge for the next few days. Meanwhile, Hammed insists that they need an alternative that means they no longer have to live outdoors. "That's the life I live. I need a solution."