Madrid Airport: Homelessness, Drugs & Bedbugs – Dong-A Ilbo

Madrid Barahas, the largest airport in Spain, is suffering from severe hygiene and security due to the influx of homeless people. Some terminals have worsened so much that they are called ‘zombies’.

According to foreign media such as the Associated Press and Dalseon on the 17th (local time), up to 500 homeless people live in the terminal at Madrid Airport. Initially, homeless people who stayed in some of the 4th terminals have been witnessed throughout the airport. Lying on the floor or sleeping between luggage are captured everywhere.

Most homeless people are in an unofficial daily job during the day, and they are resolving accommodation at the floor of the airport at night. Some have confirmed that some cases are drunk and fall asleep or urinate in the field. As a result, odors spread throughout the corridor and even pee puddle.

Even more seriously, the case of airport employees is soaring as hygiene pests such as bedbugs, ticks, and cockroaches are breeding. Airport officials are seriously concerned about cleanliness, safety and working environment.

There are also problems such as drug administration, prostitution and possession of weapons inside the homeless group. The police have restrained or arrested some homeless people with axes and knives, and have been checking their identity and arresting the wanted through regular patrols. There are frequent cases of minor quarrels spreading by violence.

In the background of this situation, a surge in housing rent is cited. According to the real estate information site IDE Star, Spain’s national average rent has nearly doubled in the last decade, and large cities such as Madrid and Barcelona have risen even more.

Those who failed to afford high rents flocked to the airport, an indoor space, avoiding the street life, and the problem was in full swing as they chose the airport as a place to sleep. On the 14th, the company plans to request a boarding pass when entering Madrid Airport. The exception of airport staff and travelers is an exception.

However, local homeless people have not yet heard of the news. A 52 -year -old female Teresa, who has been at Terminal 4th for six months, complained in an interview with the Associated Press, “If the access restriction policy is implemented, you may have to sleep on the park bench with your husband.”

The Spanish Workers’ Federation (UGT) strongly criticized the government for being passive in solving problems. The union warned in an official statement that “airport employees are exposed to unexpected risks, and travelers are also in an unstable environment in core infrastructure.”

The government and the city’s officials faced the demand for rehabilitation measures for homeless people at the airport, but no clear solution is yet to be offered.