‘This has changed me’: Outgoing volunteer shares her story
Heidi has been with us in Calais for just over two weeks. The theatre-maker from Liverpool was among the first group of workers in the UK to have their work closed last month and she decided to go to Calais immediately. Before she left, she told us about her experience. “I work in the Everyman and the Philharmonic theatres in Liverpool, and they had to close because of the rule about mass gatherings. “I was planning to come out anyway. I’d booked a week, and then all this stuff kicked off, and my job closed, and I thought I can …
Man badly burnt by French police CS gas attack
I’ve seen a lot in in Calais over the last four and a half years, but yesterday something happened that took me back to the worst of 2015/16. As many services have shut down, we often get asked to take people to hospital. It’s hard as we are a small team and busy, but had to help a young man who had been sprayed in the face with CS gas by the police. This has become common in Calais, but as I got closer I could see, rather than the red eyes and puffy face I expected, serious burns covering …
WATCH: What do refugees think of the food packs?
On food distribution yesterday, we asked the refugees what they think of the food packs we give out. This is what they told us. Refugees and migrants in Dunkirk and Calais are under threat from Coronavirus (COVID-19) and also from lack of food. Please support our emergency appeal here. …
WATCH: What’s it like being in Calais during Covid-19?
It’s not easy to describe a ‘typical’ day on the front line in Calais now. It’s so far removed from what it used to be. For a start we now go on distribution dressed like storm troopers in a full body suit, two face masks and two pairs of gloves, all of which need to be disposed of or washed at high temperatures every night, along with every piece of kit we use. Whereas we used to provide services to the refugees such as haircutting, hot drinks, games etc. all that has stopped. Instead of working to humanise …
