Manston processing centre is like a “pot that is boiling over” due to serious overcrowding, the largest union representing workers at the site has said.
The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) said they have been raising concerns about the number of people at the site “for months, but no one’s been listening”.
“Why has it taken firebombs to be thrown for anyone to take notice?”, PCS representative Kevin Mills, a Border Force employee, said.
The maximum capacity of the immigration processing centre in Manston is 1,800 people, but this peaked to around 4,000 over the weekend.
There have been some efforts to reduce the number in the past day, with home secretary Suella Braverman telling cabinet on Tuesday that a “large number” of asylum seekers had been moved out overnight.
A man threw petrol bombs attached to fireworks at Western Jet Foil immigration centre in Dover on Sunday. He then drove to a nearby petrol station and killed himself.
Counter-terrorism police have now taken over the investigation into the attack.
Some members of the PCS union, which represents hundreds of workers across both Manston and Western Jet Foil sites, witnessed the firebombing, Mr Mills said.
“On Sunday our members witnessed the attack and were quick to jump into action to calm things down. Everyone was scared because initially, all you heard was a loud bang – no one knew what was going on,” he said.
Speaking about the conditions at Manston, Mr Mills continued: “People are held for far too long. There’s inadequate bedding and facilities. Sleeping in marquees over the summer is alright, but not now winter’s coming.”
He said that PCS workers have seen “makeshift weapons” at the site.
“They haven’t been used on us, but the weapons are here. We know because we’ve had to confiscate them.”
Andy Baxter, of the Prison Officers’ Association, told The Independent that residents had been found with weapons fashioned from balsa wood cutlery and toothbrushes.
Mr Mills added: “We’ve seen fights between migrants and other security staff. Our members are fearful. It’s like a powder keg here, ready to blow, like a pot that’s boiling over.”
He said that politicians need to “tone down” their language when talking about immigration.
“It’s our members who are working in there. Using incendiary language puts them straight in the firing line,” said Mr Mills.
