Migrants in Bosnia are on their own and they barely survive, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina warned on Thursday.

“They sleep in parks, in parking lots, pedestrian zones and abandoned buildings. The situation is horrible,” said ICRC’s officer Indira Kulenovic.

Bosnia has been facing the influx of migrants from Asia and Africa, who take the route through the country towards their final destinations in various European countries. Since Croatia keeps its borders closed for illegal migrants, they are mostly stuck in the northwestern parts of the country bordering Croatia.

According to data gathered by police agencies in Bosnia, over 25,000 illegal migrants entered its territory in 2018 coming from Serbia or Montenegro, while this year some 6,000 of them were registered to cross the border.

Accommodation capacities that Bosnia and Herzegovina secured with help of international organisations provide shelter for up to 3,500 migrants, while the others are left on their own, the ICRC said.

Illustrating the situation, Kulenovic recalled of a recent tragic event when three migrants were burnt to death in a fire which broke out in an abandoned building where they stopped by to sleep over. The fire was caused by a candle.

One more migrant burnt himself out of despair and another one died after falling off a building where he found shelter.

The ICRC volunteers in Bosnia are helping the migrants on a daily basis and deliver around 3,000 meals to those accommodated in five migrant centres in different parts of the country.

Mobile teams are handing them over food, water, clothes, blankets and medical assistance.

“Our teams do the best they can but they are extremely exhausted and the situation has reached a critical point. This is a humanitarian crisis,” said ICRC Bosnia Secretary General Rajko Lazic.