Homelessness: At the emergency shelter "Wanteraktioun"

For this year’s last series of Local Matters, we have a look on the streets. The freezing temperatures made life on the streets nearly intolerable last week. More than usual took the line to get a warm meal at Stemm vun der Stroos. And more than usual went to Findel in the late afternoon, to get a warm place to sleep at the Wanteranktioun.

Wanteraktioun, (winteraction), short WAK, is an emergency shelter for homeless people. It opens as soon as the temperatures fall below zero or the 1 december at the latest. The shelter is coorganised by the three social actors Red Cross, Caritas and Inter-Actions, since last year they are assembled in the Asbl Draieck. Hundreds of volunteers support the social workers with their daily work. When I join the director Cyrielle Chibaeff at Wak in the afternoon, they have just finished lunch, volunteers are washing the dishes, they handed out almost 80 meals today. A few people are still watching tv and hanging out in the one room available for a rest, most of them went back to the streets, they will be here again in the evening.

Buses pick the people up in the city and bring them to Findel in the evening, and back in the morning. In the evening, social workers are available to talk to the people, to listen to their problems and concerns. They can take a shower, and get fresh clothes. In the upper floors of Wak, there are a few dorms. 250 beds in total, up to 56 bunk beds in one dorm. Women and men sleep separately. They can bring their pets, dogs and cats sleep in cages in the dorm.

The Wak is the biggest shelter in Luxembourg, only open in winter, not a long-term solution but only to prevent people from freezing to death. Some initiatives offer smaller shelters in the city, Inter-Actions, the CNDS and Caritas. But the places are very limited and the waiting lists are long. At Wak, the people register for only one night, with a new registration every day. Not everyone however can go there, because rules are strict. People with addictions struggle to stay a whole night without alcohol or drugs, others can’t stand sleeping in a dorm with dozens of others, or they suffer from anxiety and need their partner sleeping next to them, impossible in separated dorms. They have to find other solutions.