The fire broke out in the Napier Barracks on Friday, a military complex housing asylum seekers, which was in the middle of a recent row between Interior Minister Priti Patel and refugee charities calling on her to close the facility.
Charities have claimed that the estimated 400 asylum seekers at the plant lived in poor conditions in overcrowded dormitories and that a recent outbreak in Covid-19 infected at least 120 people, PA Media reported.
Kent police said on Saturday that the investigation into the incident was continuing and that “no serious injuries were reported as a result of the incident, but a significant amount of damage was done to one part of the site following a fire – who apparently believed deliberately started. ‘
The Home Secretary took to Twitter on Friday to condemn the ‘shocking scenes’ from Napier Barracks, where the Home Office said windows were smashed and a building set on fire.
“The damage and destruction at the Napier Barracks is not only terrible, but also very offensive to the taxpayers of this country who provide housing while asylum claims are being processed,” Patel tweeted.
“This site used to house our brave soldiers and army personnel. It is an insult to say that it is not good enough for these individuals,” she added.
Patel’s comments are critical, with the founder of one refugee charity saying the Home Secretary “should be ashamed” of her for pointing the finger at asylum seekers so quickly.
Clare Mosley, founder of the charity Care4Calais, told CNN in a statement that a British Home Secretary should accuse and reprimand ordinary people if the facts of the incident were not even known.
“It’s not just an indifferent, emotional reaction. It’s a deceptive, opportunistic smokescreen set up to divert attention from the multiple warnings she’s had about what’s clearly going to happen at the Napier barracks,” he said. added Mosley.
Care4Calais said in a Facebook message on Friday that Napier residents they spoke to “tell us they are simply terrified.”
“Their future remains uncertain and the events of today create more anxiety and fear,” he added.