Children in rural Homs burn garbage to keep warm as temperatures drop
Winter for children in Syria
Homs, Syria, 2 February 2020- “I accidentally burned his cheek with a piece of melted plastic I had lit to start the stove,” recalls Nahla, 13, with sadness in her voice, while tracing a scar on her younger brother’s face with her fingertips.
As she spoke, Nahla, her parents and five siblings were gathered in the cold unfinished room they call home in Hassia industrial zone, rural Homs, where they live in rudimentary conditions.
Years of fighting have turned the zone, around 46 kilometres south of Homs city, into a haven for hundreds of displaced families who have taken residence in skeleton buildings intended as industrial facilities and housing for factory workers. Most units don’t have glass window panes to fend off the cold as temperatures continue to drop, adding to the vulnerability of families who have lived through years of displacement, depletion of financial resources, inflation and loss of purchasing power.
Every day, Nahla, together with her siblings and other children go on a scavenger hunt around the industrial zone, looking for garbage and factory waste to be used as fuel; the only means for most families in Hassia to get some warmth during the harsh winter.
“We sometimes have to go out in the cold multiple times a day to search for junk we can burn for warmth,” explains Nahla.
The children’s daily hunt and garbage burning are filled with dangers; from roaming hazardous scrapyards to being exposed to contaminated waste and toxic fumes, to the risk of being burned like Nahla’s 10-year-old brother, Mustafa.
“My father occasionally finds daily labour at a flour mill, so we were able to buy a stove, but we cannot afford the diesel for it, so this is our only option,” she continues.
The family had arrived in Hassia a little over two months ago, after months on the move, fleeing escalating violence in Hassakeh in northeastern Syria. They managed to borrow mattresses and blankets from neighbours; their only protection against the cold.
“We fled our home in a hurry, with barely any belongings, let alone winter clothes and blankets,” Nahla explains.
To help ease the financial burden on families, UNICEF is distributing winter clothing kits to children aged 0 to 14. UNICEF is distributing winter clothing kits to children aged 0 to 14. With partners, UNICEF has reached over 10,000 of the most vulnerable children in the governorate of Homs with winter clothes to help them keep warm this winter season. Each clothing kit contains a thermal outfit, a winter jacket, woolen hat, scarf and gloves, as well as winter shoes.