BERKASOVO, Serbia — Thousands of people trying to reach the heart of Europe surged across Serbia’s border into Croatia on Monday after authorities eased restrictions that had left them stranded for days in ankle-deep mud and rain.
The miserable wave of humanity left behind a field scattered with soaked blankets, mud-caked clothing and water-logged tents as they headed for Slovenia, the next obstacle to their quest to reach richer European Union nations via the Balkans.
Monday’s surprise move allowed an estimated 3,000 more migrants to enter Croatia bound for its small Alpine neighbor, which also has been struggling to slow the flow of humanity across its frontiers – and faced another wave of trekkers seeking to reach Austria and Germany to the north.
“Without any announcement, the borders opened. When the borders opened, everybody rushed,” said Melita Sunjic, a spokeswoman for the U.N. refugee agency, who was stationed at the Serb-Croat border.
Many had discarded their mud-soaked socks and walked only in sandals or slippers through the ankle-deep muck in a driving rain, frigid winds and fog. Some who had lost limbs during the civil war in Syria were aided by friends pushing their wheelchairs down a country lane that, since Saturday, had been blocked by Croat police.